Slow Tango On High
by Nova Fearnewood
Summary: Stuck on the BUS, high in the sky, four teammates find themselves overcome with sexual urges. Skye likes Ward and Ward likes Skye but they won't tell each other. Fitz and Simmons have always had feelings for each other, but neither of them has the guts to say so until they get assigned to a high profile mission. What could possibly go wrong?
1. Liftoff

It is a widely known and accepted fact that all humans have urges.

Sexual urges.

The worst place to have these urges is on the BUS, flying several thousand feet in the air over the Pacific Ocean without booze or hard drinks on board to drown those urges out.

What makes it even worse is when one is an Agent of SHIELD and has to obey the rules to a t, which also meant one had to be sneaky (and downright creative) when taking care of those urges the old fashioned way. Most agents are disciplined enough and have learned how to ignore the urge.

But for Skye, Ward, Simmons, and Fitz, those urges can only be ignored for so long.

**Skye POV **

"_Think of something else…don't think about locking your door and using your vibrator… everyone will hear it and know what you're doing! You shouldn't be sad either, you finally found where you belong, you should be happy!"_, my conscience yelled from inside my head.

Even after two weeks, I was still kind of getting over the fact that my lifelong dream of finding my parents was shattered and that my search for them was over, since I was an 0-84, or an Object of Unknown Origin, but I was still human and I was still a woman.

A woman who was having crying jags and feeling horny at the same time.

I wasn't the only one that was acting strange either, in fact, everyone except for May and Coulson was acting odd.

Ward would avoid touching me while we were training and he would avoid sitting next to me at meals and during movie night with FitzSimmons. We still talked and trained but it wasn't always the know-it-all and the holier-than-thou part of Ward that was doing the talking. It was the understanding and caring side of Ward, the of him side that I didn't even think existed.

Simmons would space off in the Lab and then get all flustered when Fitz and I would snap her out of her daze. She would stare at Fitz and then I noticed how her hand would quiver a bit before she would adjust her belt and let out a soft sigh.

Fitz however was entirely different. He would be reading something in a manila folder and then whenever one of us would ask him what he was reading, he would close the folder, open up a filing cabinet and stuff it inside before blushing and saying it was nothing.

Everyone was probably just stressed that's all.

"Skye, wheels up in five minutes…", Ward said as he poked his head in my bunk and I hastily wiped my eyes so he wouldn't see my tears.

Too late, Ward was too keen of an observer to miss that.

"Hey, Skye… are you still upset about what Coulson told you?", he asked, sitting on my bed.

"Well yeah, I mean, how would you feel about someone telling you that, for 24 years, you had hope that your parents were still out there somewhere and that your lifelong search for them was all for nothing because you are an 0-84. Imagine you've finally found your place in the world and it was in the last place you expected to find it… that's a lot to digest."

Ward glanced down at his feet.

"Yeah, you're right, that is a lot for one person to take in, but I'm here for you if you want to talk… I may be a 'robot' but I'm a 'robot' that cares for his rookie.", he replied and he smiled at me softly before getting up and leaving.

"Thanks Ward.", I said.

"You can call me _Grant_…", he replied over his shoulder, and I could've sworn that he said his own name in a sexy tone, but it was probably just my hormone-drunk imagination playing tricks on me.

Either way, now I _really _ wanted to lock my door and use my vibrator for its intended purpose, to hell with what anyone else thought!

Grant Ward is the hottest guy I have ever met and he appeared often in my sexy fantasies.

Everything about him was a turn on nowadays!

I heard the telltale ding and looked up to find my seatbelt light on.

"This is your pilot speaking, take your seats and fasten your seatbelts, wheels up in two minutes and no Fitz, we are not taking off vertically.", May said over the intercom.

_Oh well, maybe I can wait until we've landed in the Philippines to scratch my itch…_

**Ward POV**

"You are now free to move about the cabin", May said after we were up in the air.

I promptly unbuckled my seatbelt and went to my bunk.

As I locked the door behind myself, I let out a low groan and looked down at the front of my trousers.

Dammit.

I had pitched another tent in my pants.

This keeps happening whenever I go around Skye, I'm fine until she looks at me with those doe eyes of hers and then I just get hard.

What made matters worse was May ending our 'Friends With Benefits' arrangement because she saw me checking out Skye and basically told me that if I wanted an actual relationship, screwing around with her was not the sort of thing I should be doing.

I knew that I had feelings for Skye in a friendly sort of way but she is so unlike me.

She was always very pretty and now that she's learned that SHIELD was the reason why she was bounced around from one foster home to another, she's become really serious about not disappointing anyone else on the BUS (not that she was a disappointment, but that she did some disappointing things).

She doesn't annoy me as much anymore and I can't believe I'm thinking it, but I actually miss her annoying quirks. They gave her personality. Now she's reduced to an emotional mess that would rather spend more time downstairs working out her anger on the punching bag than tapping away on her computer.

She found the push to get serious, she had her defining moment that every rookie has and she's changed because of it.

I miss parts of the old Skye…

I think, no, _I know_, that part of me is attracted to Skye… why else would I get a hard on around her?

I wasn't allowed to like her though, even if she is perfect in every way…

_Did I just admit to myself that Skye, is perfect in every way?_

_What the fuck is wrong with me?_

I'm her SO for Christ's sake!

Sure we are around the same age, I'm 26 and she's 24, so it's not like I'm some creepy old guy robbing the cradle… but still, having an affair with your rookie, who happens to be the hottest woman on here, is very unprofessional.

I slid down the wall in my bunk and sighed.

The more I thought about Skye, the harder I got.

I groaned as my trousers became way too tight around my cock and I undid my belt so that it wouldn't be so confining.

Why me?

I tried thinking of unpleasant things but Skye somehow found a way into those thoughts too.

_Okay, disturbing mental imagery isn't working… time for Plan B, I have to take care of this problem the old fashioned way…_

I let out a groan as I freed myself from the material prison and used a bit of the lotion I had stashed under my bed to slick my palms before I grasped myself and began working.

I pushed the guilt of jerking myself off like a horny teenager out of my mind and focused on mentally undressing the carbon copy of Skye who lived in my imagination.

Her eyes, her lips, her hair and her body were coming into focus as I tensed up.

_Careful there, you almost lost it…_

I tried not to make a sound as I felt myself getting closer, biting my lip to keep from letting out a moan, but that didn't stop me from growling out one word as I pushed myself over the edge.

"_Skye…"_

**Simmons POV**

In my head, a lot of things happened and they were my daydreams… it hurt to realize that the world in my head was better than the one I was living in now, but that's just how it is.

In my daydreams, I'm prettier and Fitz always notices when I fix my hair differently, I'm just perfect and everything goes according to plan.

Fitz and I are together, just the way I've always hoped we'd be and I'm the only one who matters to him.

_I'm his girl._

Another thing that usually happens (especially now that I'm feeling kind of horny) is that I have sexual fantasies about Fitz and myself doing a myriad of inappropriate things together whilst in various states of undress.

Just watching him work when I was in an aroused state of mind was enough to make me ruin a pair of knickers.

"Simmons? Are ye' gonna help me with this or are ye' jus' gonna stand there?", Fitz asked, a slight note of annoyance creeping into his all too perfect Scottish accent.

"Oh, sorry Fitz, I-I just had a thought about a new grade of tranquilizer to use in the Night-Night guns…", I lied as I helped Fitz move a heavy piece of tracking equipment to the main workbench so that he could install a few upgrades.

"I don' know what's been up with ye' recently but it's startin' ta worry me. Is everything okay?", Fitz asked as we steadied the equipment on the workbench and he fixed me with his stormy blue/grey eyes.

I was the worst liar in history with the absolute worst poker face, but I had to lie about my daydreams, they were far too embarrassing for me to tell Fitz, as most of them did concern him.

I looked away and fiddled with the knobs on my microscope.

"No, I'm fine Fitz, really, I am.", I lied.

He placed a hand on mine and I felt myself blushing behind my curtain of hair.

"Jemma… don' lie ta me… we're best friends, I can tell when yer not bein' honest with me.", he murmured almost lovingly.

I lifted my head and brushed my hair away before pulling away from his hand.

"I'm not lying to you Fitz, it's just that some things I prefer to keep to myself that's all.", I replied, still avoiding his gaze.

"But ye' know that ye' can trust me with anything right?", He asked and he sounded hurt.

I turned around and saw him gazing at the fire extinguisher that I used to knock him out.

I strode over to him and stood by his side.

"You know that I do."

"Then can ye' please tell me what's botherin' ye' so?"

I sighed.

I could still tell him that I _had_ daydreams and just keep it at that… I didn't have to tell him about my fantasies…

"Well, Fitz, I like to daydream sometimes… you know, just let my mind wander off and be free because I love science but my mind needs a break from it every now and again…"

"So yer jus' daydreamin' away over there?", he asked and a slight smile pulled up the corners of his mouth as he dried his hands, "Whatcha daydreamin' about?", he asked.

"Oh, they're quite self-centered really…", I said and tried to brush the subject off.

"Let's hear em' then shall we?", Fitz asked, sitting down at his lab stool.

I knew that he wasn't going to take no for an answer so I decided to tell him one of my oldest and fondest daydreams (and I don't mean the one where Fitz pins me to the workbench and has his way with me, although that could fit the description quite well).

"Alright… I'll tell you one of my personal favorites…", I began, "almost all girls dream about their wedding day at some point, I began dreaming about mine when I was eight."

"Didn't quite expect that from ye'… but go on…"

"I'm dressed in all white, my hair is fixed similar to how it was during our Graduates' Ball at the Academy, only I have the small pearl tiara that my mum wore for her wedding in my hair and that has my veil attached to it… I'm wearing a gown similar to Duchess Kate's with the long lace sleeves and modest neckline only it's bodice laces up in back and the skirt doesn't flare out that much. ", I murmur with my eyes shut, the image forming in my mind's eye.

"Gosh Jems, tha' way ye' describe yerself as a bride sounds as though ye' been thinking about settling down more often than not…", Fitz chuckled softly.

"My bridesmaids would be dressed in royal blue gowns with touches of gold here and there… the flowers in my bouquet are blue and gold…"

"What about yer' groom and his groomsmen? What are they wearin'?", Fitz asked.

"I never imagined a groom actually, or his groomsmen… I always thought that whoever would have me to be their wife would want to plan that aspect of the wedding for himself…", I said, telling him only a half truth.

The truth was that, ever since I met Fitz, all I could see my groom wearing was a kilt and a tuxedo top, as Scottish tradition called for.

Deep down, I had always loved Fitz but those feelings have been floating much closer to the surface since he almost jumped out of a plane to save me.

"Ah well that wedding o' yer's sounds like a right fancy affair… I hope ye' get to have it one day and I hope I'm invited to it… especially if there's an open bar, ye' know I'll make my signature party punch… that'll get yer guests havin' a fantastic time at the reception, besides Jems, I know how ye' love that punch…", Fitz laughed.

"You're right, I do like that punch of yours. You'd always make it when you were working behind the bar in the Boiler Room. Do you remember when we swapped the normal punch at the graduates ball with your signature punch?", I laughed.

"An everyone got roarin' drunk but us?", he added.

"Yes! It was one of the few pranks we played at the academy…", I replied as Coulson walked into the lab.

"Fitz. I need you to take a look at Lola, she's been making strange noises and I think it's time for a tune up…", he said, tossing Fitz the keys to his precious Lola, "Do your thing…", he said before leaving.

Fitz turned to me.

"Well Jems, it was nice hearin' about yer' dream wedding… I'm gonna change into my mechanic's jumpsuit an get ta work on Lola… good luck with that new grade o' tranquilizer…", he said as he left the lab.

I put my iPhone into the iHome dock in the lab and started playing my music in the lab as I started working on the new grade of tranquilizer (which I had to formulate now that I had lied about it to Fitz).

I started to let my mind wander again, only this time it was my other fantasy of Fitz and I having sex in the lab.

I closed my eyes and let my mind wander…

_Fitz pushed me up against the wall of the Lab, our lips crushed against each other's and our tongues wrestling for dominance._

_Fitz shifted us around and released me momentarily as I struggled out of my jumper and blouse. _

_I turned my back to him as I unhooked my bra and he came up behind me. I felt the evidence of his arousal pressing into my backside and that made me quiver._

_He flipped me around and I practically ripped his shirt open to run my hands over the smooth planes of his chest and his abs. He wasn't a solid wall of rippling muscle like Ward but he had lots of lean muscle that was still firm enough to make me quiver with excitement._

_He kissed down my neck and bit at the place where my neck and shoulders met, making me moan. _

_He pushed me up against the workbench in the middle of the Lab as I struggled to get him out of his trousers._

_He threw the last articles of my clothes to the side, his following behind mine as I sat with my knees apart on the workbench. _

"_Does it turn ye' on Jemma? Knowin' that we could get caught like this? Does the risk of givin' May, Coulson, Ward or Skye a free show make ye' want this?", He whispered huskily into my ear._

"_Yes… oh… Leo…", I moaned back in reply as his dexterous fingers dipped between my legs._

"_Jemma… yer' so wet… is it all for me?", he asked as he pushed his ring and middle fingers inside of me and found my g-spot quickly. _

"_It's only for you…", I moaned back helplessly as his thumb began worrying away at my clit._

_He growled possessively at my words as my breathing hitched._

"_My God woman… do ye' have any clue how crazy ye' make me?", he growled into my ear before nipping the shell of it gently. _

"_Please Leo… take me…"_

"_If ye' insist…", he whispered before gasping as I wrapped my hand around his shaft and guided it towards myself._

"_Jemma…"_

"_Do it Leo…", I said as I removed my hand from his shaft._

_He groped around and then we locked eyes before he entered me._

"Jemma?"

_He was so good at making me moan._

"Jemma? Are ye' okay?"

_I was so close…_

"Oi, Jemma, if ye' don' snap outta it, I'm gonna throw a bucket o' water on ye'!", Fitz called, snapping me back to reality.

He had his blue mechanic's jumpsuit on, a black shirt beneath it, his black combat boots laced up, and his mechanic's gloves pulled firmly into place. He put on his safety glasses and grabbed his tool bag and grease rag from underneath his workbench.

"Sorry Fitz, I just got sidetracked…"

"Jemma, ye' gotta stop daydreamin' sometime or else yer' gonna make a mistake in yer' calculations an' that could cause God-knows-what ta happen. I don' wanna see ye' gettin' hurt on account o' some daydream…", he smiled, "As my mum always told me, 'Save the dreamin' for bedtime'. Good Luck Jems.", he said before walking out to Lola and popping the hood.

"Thanks Fitz…", I murmured as the doors to the Lab whooshed closed behind him.

I glanced around for my notebook where I listed all my ideas including what grades of tranquilizers I had already tested and labeled as failures.

"Maybe Fitz put it in his filing cabinet by accident…", I mused aloud as I went over and opened up the top drawer of his cabinet and began leafing through its contents.

A bright color caught my eye amid the blueprints and manila folders and I backtracked until I came across the colorful item and pulled it out of the drawer.

I stared at the item, a magazine, for a split second before I realized what it was, then I threw it down and screeched "OH MY GOD!" as the truth hit me.

**Fitz POV**

Simmons has been daydreaming lately but at least her thoughts have kept her from discovering my secret hobby, which is quite embarrassing.

Ever since I went out on my own, I haven't had a girlfriend so, like many lonely young men, I turned to porn. I was using videos to get myself off until I heard that the Academy computers had special programs that would detect things like porn websites and that the Wi-Fi was protected by the same types of programs as the computers. I turned to magazines.

At the Academy I had a false bottom in one of my desk drawers where I would hide the magazines but when I graduated and started working at the HUB with Simmons, I had to get creative with my hiding places.

I outfitted a laptop bag with a secret compartment that was big enough for my magazines and I hid a few others around my room in the flat that Simmons and I shared during our time at the HUB.

When Simmons and I joined Coulson's team, I really had to step up my game.

I now have hiding places in my filing cabinets, one under my mattress, I still have the laptop bag plus a few other bags with similar compartments, and the top of the nightstand in my bunk is on hinges with a hidden compartment there too.

I guess it helps to be a genius engineer.

Now in the SHIELD handbook, it doesn't say that pornography is totally banned, it's only banned when in the digital form, so technically I'm not breaking any rules by having my magazines, I just don't think it's very proper to let my teammates and friends know I have them.

Simmons can daydream all she wants as long as she doesn't do it in the Lab where she might make a mistake, but there have been times when I would be alone and I would look at my magazines. I almost got caught looking at it once by Skye.

I was noticing that my magazines alone weren't doing the trick anymore because I kept imagining Simmons in the various poses instead of the actual models.

It was annoying at first until I realized a few days ago that my mental image of Jemma Simmons in those poses was a lot more effective when I felt the need to get myself off.

Then again, that did make much more sense to me, I mean, I've had a crush on Jemma Simmons since the day I met her.

I leaned over Lola's engine and began tinkering away.

_I wonder what else Jemma is thinking about besides that dream wedding of hers…_

"OH MY GOD!", Jemma gasped from the Lab, loud enough for me to hear it through the semi soundproof glass doors.

I looked up and saw she had one of my filing cabinet drawers open.

Then I saw the look of disgust on her face and realized that my secret was out.

She looked in my direction and the look on her face said it all quite clearly.

"_Leopold Fitz, you had better march yourself in here right this second and give me an explanation for this."_

I entered the Lab as Jemma glared at me.

"Fitz,", she began in an even tone, "can you please tell me why you have a dirty magazine in the Lab?"

"Well, I get desperate sometimes…", I said lamely.

"Is that all you have to say for yourself?", she asked.

"I'm sorry?", I said, making it sound more like a question than an actual apology.

She huffed in agitation and shook her head in disappointment.

"Why the Lab though? Why not hide it in your bunk where I wouldn't find it in passing?", she asked.

I could tell she was disgusted with me for keeping something like that in the Lab, but I had to give her points for maintaining composure instead of yelling at me like I thought she would.

"I don't know why I decided to hide it here…", I replied, not knowing exactly why I decided the Lab was a safe place to hide a dirty magazine. "You aren't mad are you?", I asked.

"No, I'm not mad… I understand how people get when they're deprived… I'm just a bit disappointed because I thought you wouldn't have to use things like that to get yourself, well, in the mood…"

At this point, I wish she would just yell at me because her disappointment was like pulling an adhesive bandage off slowly, it hurt a lot and the pain lingered even after the bandage was gone. If she yelled at me, the theoretical bandage would be ripped off quickly and it would only hurt for a second.

"What do you want me to do?", I asked.

"Get rid of them… get them out of the Lab and don't let me find them in here again…", she said, pushing the Playboy across the table towards me. "I'm sorry if this is embarrassing for you…", she said softly.

"Why are you apologizing to me? I had this coming from the moment I decided to hide this in here… I'm sorry you had to find out that this was the type of person I am… My God, I'm no better than some teenage boy who can't control himself…", I said, now fully feeling the shame that I deserved.

"It's my fault for looking around in your cabinet… I just wanted to find my notebook.", she said and then I noticed her sniffle a bit.

"Jems… you aren't crying are you?", I asked as I threw the Playboy (now smudged with grease from Lola) in my laptop bag and walked over to her.

She wiped her eyes and said,

"Yes Fitz, I'm crying…"

"But why?"

"I don't like being disappointed in you."

"But you don't have to be so upset about it… I know I messed up, but you shouldn't feel so terrible… it's not your fault for finding it, it's my fault for keeping them there… if it makes you feel any better, I was starting to not need them anyway…"

I wanted to hug her and tell her I wasn't the man she thought I was but it was too late for all of that.

"And why don't you need them? Have you found something better to get off to?", she asked, finally sounding angry. "Why don't you need them anymore?"

"Well…yes…", I began, and then a thought flashed through my mind.

Maybe I should just tell her the truth, that those airbrushed models pale in comparison to her. Perhaps it's time I tell her exactly how I feel about her…

"Go on Fitz, I'm waiting…"

I took a deep breath and steeled myself.

"Jemma, I've always liked you and I've stopped using those magazines because my feelings for you have grown…", I admitted.

She stared at me with a blank expression on her face for the longest time.

"What?", she finally asked.

I pulled off my greasy gloves and placed them on my workbench.

"Um, I've always liked you…"

"I heard that. Why did you stop using the magazines?"

"Because you are prettier than any photo, smarter than any model, and you put every other woman to shame when it comes to being compassionate towards the ones you care about."

"I'm very flattered by that but, I'm afraid I may not fully understand what you're telling me. You're telling me that you substituted your dirty magazines and started getting yourself off to thoughts of me?", she asked.

"Uh, yeah.", I replied.

"So you get turned on by _me_?", she asked.

"Yes.", I answered.

"Well… this is awkward…", she replied, brows raised.

"Why? You don't like me that way?", I asked, bracing myself for the rejection that was sure to come.

"Well…"

"So that's it then? I'm just your friend?", I asked, feeling like a damned fool for even hoping that Jemma would reciprocate my feelings.

"Fitz… You're my best friend…", she replied and I felt my heart sink as I turned away, "But…"

She spun me around, grabbed me by my collar, and pressed her lips firmly against mine before releasing me just as quickly.

She was blushing beet red and then it hit me.

_Jemma Simmons just kissed me._

"Of course I feel the same way Fitz!", she confessed. "How could I not possib-", I interrupted her by kissing her back.

This time it wasn't some swift peck on the lips, but I held her like I always wanted to and she wrapped her arms around my neck to pull me closer.

This had to be the best day of my life.


	2. Gaining Altitude

**Skye POV**

I passed by Ward's bunk on my way to the on-board kitchen when I heard him groan from inside the room.

I stopped in my tracks.

"Wa- Grant?", I asked, knocking on his door, "Are you okay?"

"What? Yeah… I-I'm fine…", he replied in a gravelly voice, and I would've brushed it off but he stuttered.

Grant Ward NEVER stutters.

"Are you sure?", I asked, "You don't sound fine."

"Trust me Skye… I'm fine."

"Okay then… if you say so…", I replied, still concerned for Ward's well-being, after all, I do like him a lot.

I mean, there isn't really a lot of things a person could dislike about him. Sure he wasn't really a people person or even outwardly nice to everyone, but once you got to know him a little better, he was nice in his own ways.

His killer body, perfect voice, and his hidden personality and character traits that, when they were revealed, broke his hard exterior.

He was amazing and I knew I would probably never get a chance to be with him in a romantic way, but I liked to think that someday we would.

I proceeded into the kitchen and fixed myself a PB&J sandwich before taking my sandwich back to my own bunk for lunch.

I was on edge and being in close quarters with Grant didn't help at all.

The sooner we land in Manila, the better.

As I passed Ward's bunk again I heard him moaning something.

I was careful to not be heard over Ward's moans (which weren't overwhelmingly loud) as I put my sandwich on the bar and pressed my ear to his door.

Then he whispered one word with an aroused tone.

"_Skye….."_

I pulled back from the door in surprise, not sure if I should be aroused or astonished.

I shook my head, thinking I had heard wrong, before putting my ear to the door again.

"_Skye…"_, he moaned again, pleasure evident in his voice.

A shiver rolled down my spine and goosebumps erupted on my skin. Warmth spread throughout my body and pooled in my lower abdomen as I inhaled sharply.

Hearing him growl my name in a tone laced with want and pleasure was enough to make me ruin my panties and I was very close to doing just that.

I don't know what came over me in that moment, but I heard Ward growl my name a third time and I reacted to it, sharply inhaling again when my knees went weak for a second and I bumped my knee against his door as I tried to balance myself.

All of Ward's low moans were stifled completely and I held my breath, staying as still as a statue.

I knew he was listening for any movement outside his bunk and I was listening for any movement within his bunk.

The plane hit a bit of turbulence and shuddered, rattling the bottles behind the bar loudly and providing the right cover noise for me to make my escape.

I heard quick movement on the other side of his door, grabbed my sandwich, and bolted to my bunk across the common area, closing the door just as we pulled out of the turbulence. The second I activated the lock to my door was the moment I heard Ward's door open.

I heard the water running at the sink behind the bar and knew that I had only a minute before Ward would most likely knock on my door.

I had YouTube open on my computer and quickly pressed the refresh button and put on my headphones before taking a bite of my sandwich.

A few seconds later, there was a knock at the door and I unlocked it, making sure to act like I didn't just hear Grant Ward moaning my name while he was (most likely) masturbating.

I opened the door and found none other than Ward standing there. His face was flushed, his hair was mussed, his eyes had darkened, and he was breathing a bit heavy.

But the thing that really floored me was the fact that his _scent_ had changed from him smelling like Irish Spring and gun cleaner to an overpowering smell that I could only categorize as arousal and it was laced with the faint smell of hand lotion.

So he _was _masturbating…

"Oh, hey Grant. What's up?", I asked nonchalantly while I fought the overwhelming urge to pull him all the way into my bunk, lock the door, and have my way with him.

"Well, I-", he began before Coulson walked by.

"We have another mission, meet me in the command center in five.", he said, "And Ward, if you're trying out a new hairstyle, let me be the first one to say that it isn't working for you…".

Coulson went down to the Lab and I turned back to Ward who was using my wall mirror to fix his hair.

"You were saying?"

"Oh, yeah… did you hear something a while ago?", he asked.

"Nope.", I lied, popping the 'p', "The only thing I heard was Daft Punk…", I said, pointing to my computer screen.

"Okay good."

"Why, was I supposed to hear something?"

"No, no…", he said, shaking his head, "If you didn't hear it…It's not that important…"

We walked into the command center and sat around the touchscreen table.

"Skye… I think I need to tell you something…", Ward began but fell silent as FitzSimmons and Coulson entered the room. A soft 'bing' was heard, signaling to us that the autopilot feature had been engaged. May joined us a few seconds later.

"Alright now that we're all here, I suppose we can get right down to business, this is an undercover mission that will take four people. Centipede is in a new location now which is why we are also changing our destination. Manila will only be used as a refueling station and as a place to do our laundry. We will spend one day in the Philippines but we will not leave the SHIELD Base for security and visa reasons.", Coulson said.

"Where are we going then?", Simmons asked.

"Brush up on your French, we're headed to Paris.", Coulson said.

I got excited at his words. I had always wanted to go to Paris and see the Eiffel Tower.

"Who's on the four man team?", May asked, "You know how I feel about undercover work."

"Relax May.", Coulson said, "We'll be on the BUS. Ward, Skye, and FitzSimmons will be going undercover as four attendees at a formal ball in Paris hosted by a couple we think may be high-ranking members of Centipede… Louis and Madeline Noir. They are a young wealthy couple, both born as only children to old money families, Louis's and Madeline's parents are dead, leaving them as the sole heir and heiress of their respective family fortunes. They married when they were in their early twenties and combined their fortunes, making themselves multibillionaires. They ditched their old family names and took up the surname 'Noir'. The ball is in the evening on Valentine's Day and it's one of the Noir's annual events. It's a chance for two of you to mingle and distract the hosts as the other two find out what they can about the Noir's involvement with Centipede while everyone is enjoying the most romantic night of the year in the most romantic place on the planet."

A photo of the couple popped up and I was surprised, they looked so _happy_ together, not at all what I would expect from supposedly evil people, but I had learned early on that looks could be deceiving.

"S'cuse me, but wha' exactly will we be doin' while we're there?", Fitz asked.

"All that will be explained in time but it is implied that you use the covers of two wealthy couples travelling together, one of the couples will have to be either engaged or married, the other will be in a serious relationship."

"Couples?", Simmons asked.

"Yeah couples, so start acting like Fitz is your significant other, same for you and Skye.", Coulson said, pointing to Ward and I, "I'm sorry if I seem a bit terse, but this is a high stakes mission, one false move could compromise the entire operation and in turn cost you your lives. This is why I want you to adopt the roles immediately…you can decide who wants to play the part of the engaged or married couple."

Ward nodded.

"Oh and another thing, you need to learn how to dance."

"Dance?", Fitz, Simmons, and I asked in unison.

"Yes. Dance. At the ball, you must dance to fit in with the other guests. Do not forget how important it is to maintain these roles. If there are no more questions, then you are dismissed."

**Ward POV**

I'm supposed to get into character and be Skye's "boyfriend", "fiancée", or even her "husband" for this Paris mission and I was having mixed feelings about this.

What if I let my true feelings for Skye show to add authenticity to the cover? What if I got too attached to a fake relationship? What if she feels the same way? What if she doesn't? How do I keep myself from getting hard?

I was getting so messed up here, I was sure I was imagining things, I mean just a few minutes ago, I could've sworn that someone was outside of my bunk and eavesdropping while I jerked off.

My mind was practically screaming that this cover was a bad idea, but my heart was already wanting to be close to Skye. To be the man she could depend on.

Skye opened the door to the spiral staircase that led down to the Lab/Ramp area of the plane, following FitzSimmons down.

"So…we have to be all lovey towards each other, huh?", Skye stated blandly as we entered the Lab and sat down. "And either FitzSimmons or Grant and I have to pretend to be engaged or married."

We all just gave her the 'No shit, Sherlock' look and sat in silence, not really sure about what we should say.

"So I suppose we should start acting like couples… Agent Coulson _did _say that a botched mission could cost us our lives…", Simmons suggested after a tense minute passed, "Agent Ward, maybe you should show us how to get into character, since you're the only one of us here who has gone undercover enough times to know what to do."

I shrugged.

"Sure…"

I closed my eyes, speaking to Skye as I thought.

"Skye, I want to see how well you can adopt your role as my supposed girlfriend too, so get ready. I'll pretend that we're at the Noir Ball and that we've just finished our undercover mission. Now we have to leave without attracting too much attention to ourselves."

"On it.", she muttered.

I thought of the perfect guy for Skye and then the perfect gentleman, combining the two to get a hybrid character.

"Ready?", I asked, slipping into character.

"Ready.", she replied.

I opened my eyes and found her staring at me.

I forgot what I was doing for a second as I drowned in her warm brown eyes, then I walked across the Lab to her.

"Darling you look positively stunning this evening…", I said in a voice that was both manly and gentle.

"Well thank you for noticing Grant, I think you look equally handsome.", she replied, lowering her eyelids slightly as a warm grin spread across her lips.

God she is so beautiful, much more than I deserve, so much more than I will probably ever get.

"I couldn't help but notice that my girlfriend happens to be the most beautiful woman here… She's the envy of everyone that meets her gaze.", I said in a low voice, trying to get her to react.

"We've been dancing around the truth and each other for so long…", she murmured, drawing nearer.

"Well then Skye, what would you like to do? Personally, I've been bored for the past half hour…", I said, keeping my voice even.

"I personally feel the need to bid our hosts au revoir… would you like to take this somewhere more…", she lowered her eyelids and bit her lower lip before murmuring, "…private? Say the hotel?"

She got really close to me and looked straight into my eyes before trailing her long perfect index finger down my chest.

I was about to lose it (if I wasn't I my refractory period, I would probably have a hard on) when I slipped out of character and said,

"And that was great Skye. You really got into the character."

A disappointed look crossed her face before she smirked and dropped the charade. FitzSimmons applauded from the other side of the Lab.

"Tha' was amazing!", Fitz said, "The two o' ya really got inta character… I wonder if Simmons and I will be able to beat tha'."

Simmons looked at Fitz and replied,

"I don't know if we _can_, but we'll certainly _try_."

"Skye, that was a flawless act. Great job.", I said with a smile.

"Wow, you actually paid me a compliment…", she said with a laugh.

"Ward's right though, ye' are really great wit' the whole gettin' inta character thing…", Fitz piped up from the other side of the room.

"Okay now it's your turn!", Skye announced, pointing to the two scientists.

"No problem.", Simmons said, turning away from Fitz to a complex piece of machinery. "So I guess we'll just pretend to be working together and being romantic at the same time then, since I've never really done this before.", Simmons said. "I'm ready."

"Go right ahead with that, but we'll have to test different scenarios eventually.", I replied.

FitzSimmons nodded and then Fitz said,

"Ready."

"Fitz, could you show me how to take the panel off and rewire the system to get to the thermostat chamber?", Simmons asked, starting off the improvisation, and the look she gave Fitz was so loving, it almost looked like she wasn't acting at all.

"No problem Simmons.", he said, and he gave her a similar loving look.

When Fitz came over, he stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her smaller frame, placing his hands on her hands, gently guiding them as he rested his chin on her shoulder.

"Tha' first thing ye' wanna do is get tha' righ' type o' screwdriver to match tha' screws that are holdin' tha' panel in place. In this case, ye' would be needin' a Phillips Head screwdriver."

Simmons grasped the tool and said,

"I know that right is tight and left is loose."

"An' that'd be correct.", he murmured.

Simmons got the panel off in no time.

"Now how do I rewire the system?"

"Disconnect tha blue wire first, tha red wire second, an' tha green wire last.", Fitz instructed.

Simmons followed his instructions.

"Tha thermostat chamber should be in plain sight.", Fitz said, taking a step closer to Simmons.

"Now what?", Simmons asked.

"Ye' do wha' ye' have to do."

Simmons tinkered around for a while before reconnecting and replacing everything.

"I never really noticed till now how delicate yer' hands are…", Fitz murmured, pressing his cheek against Simmons's cheek, his hands moving to touch hers.

"Fitz, your hands are a bit rough… but the way you work with them is amazing…", Simmons murmured, turning to face Fitz, "Thank you for helping me.", she whispered, gazing into Fitz's eyes as they got closer to each other.

At this point I honestly wondered if they were really going to kiss each other and sell the act.

Actually, the question I _should _be asking is 'Are they acting or is this all real?'

Fitz leaned closer to Simmons, not breaking eye contact as he whispered,

"Tha' pleasure's all mine, Simmons…"

They looked like they were going to kiss when Skye cried,

"Just kiss already!"

Fitz and Simmons pushed away from each other quickly and I felt like telling Skye that she should've just let them kiss instead of embarrassing them like that.

"Well,", Simmons began, "that was the best we could do…"

"And that was amazing!", Skye complimented, "For a while there, I had to remind myself that this was you two acting, because you could've easily passed as a couple."

"Really? I didn't know we were that good.", Simmons said.

Fitz had his back to us and was fiddling with something on his desk.

"Hey Fitz,", I began, "you were really good at selling the act."

"Thanks.", he said, not turning around.

My stomach growled and I looked at my watch.

"Skye, do you want to get some lunch?", I asked, noticing how Simmons had a concerned look on her face as she glanced at Fitz.

"Sure, I already had a sandwich but I'm still kind of hungry.", she replied.

I walked to the door following Skye and asked,

"FitzSimmons? You joining us?"

Simmons looked up and replied,

"Maybe later, but go on without me."

"Fitz?"

"Not hungry righ' now.", he said, still tinkering away.

I shrugged and left the Lab, wondering if I should say something more.

I went into the kitchen and fixed myself a salad and Skye sat across from me at the table, munching on some carrots and avoiding my gaze.

"Skye? Is something bothering you?"

"Well no—I mean, yes.", she replied.

"What is it?", I asked.

"Well, it's pretty awkward…", she began, still not meeting my eyes.

"Um, would you rather talk to Simmons?", I asked, actively avoiding the possibility of 'girl talk'.

"No… Um, you remember when you asked me if I heard anything?", she asked, looking up for a second.

"Yeah…", I replied slowly, hoping that she didn't hear me moaning her name.

"Well, I was kind of on the way back from the kitchen when I, uh… well, you see, what had happened was…", she stammered, her face turning beet red.

"What did you hear?", I asked, punctuating the words.

"Iaccidentallyheardyoujerkingoff.", she mumbled.

"You what?", I asked, "Could you repeat that a little slower?"

"I accidentally heard you jerking off… I'm sorry.", she replied and hid her face.

"Did you hear anything else?", I asked, my heart racing at her confession.

"You saying my name.", she whispered.

Shit.

I guess it was time to tell her the truth.

"Skye, I've actually had feelings for you for a while and, well, a guy gets lonely sometimes…", I said.

"Grant, you have no idea how weird- Wait, what? You like me?", she asked, finally looking me in the face.

"Well, yeah…", I said, internally bracing myself for rejection.

"I feel the same.", she replied.

My heart raced.

She likes me too!

I feel like an eighth grader who just received a valentine from his crush, I was so nervous and yet so elated.

"So, what does this make us? Friends?", I asked lamely.

"Maybe a little more than that, but I want to give it some time before we do anything to make it official…", she replied.

I nodded, finally feeling like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders.

"Oh and Grant?", she asked.

"Yes?"

"I get that way about you sometimes… especially recently… sometimes I need to take care of business, if you get my drift…", she replied.

I nodded, finally understanding why she was on edge.

"So do you want to practice being a couple?", I asked, adding quickly, "You know, for the Paris mission…"

"I don't think I'd mind that at all, _Grant_…"


	3. Perfect

**Simmons POV**

"Fitz, what's wrong?", I asked noticing his distanced attitude.

"Nothing's wrong…I'm just tryin' ta figure out what we are.", he replied.

I sighed and walked over to him, placing my hand on his.

"Fitz, what do you want us to be?", I asked.

He finally turned around and replied,

"Ta' be quite honest, I want us ta' be in an actual relationship. I want ta' be yer' boyfriend… I've liked ye' since tha' day I met ye'."

"I'd like that.", I said. "I've always wanted to be your girlfriend… ever since we met at the Academy."

"We'll have ta' keep tha' relationship from interferin' wit' our work, an' that'll take some gettin' used ta' on my part.", he replied. "But I'm goin' ta' do my best ta' keep ye' happy."

"You don't even need to try, I'm already happy with you."

He offered me a small smile and walked away to the other side of the lab, but I could tell he was still worried about something.

"Why are you acting like this?", I asked, wondering why he wasn't happier now that we were finally a couple.

"I'm not tryin' ta be rude or anythin' like that, I'm just tryin' ta stop myself from sayin' somethin' I may end up regrettin' later.", he said, turning to me.

"What would you regret saying?", I asked, walking over to him.

"If I told ye' then ye' would be mad at me."

"Just tell me, I swear I won't get mad at you."

"Fine then. I don' wan' ye' ta come on this mission."

I was taken aback for a second.

"Why not?"

He looked down and murmured,

"Because tha' las' time ye' were in a risky situation, ye' almos' died."

I thought about when I had the alien virus, how I had almost died and how Fitz tried to save me. I also remembered how terrified I was when Fitz went on the Ossetia mission with Ward… how he was so close to never coming back to me.

"And the last time you went into the field, _you _almost died."

"True.", he replied.

"Then why don't you want me coming on this mission?", I asked, placing my hand on his.

He pulled me into his arms and hugged me tightly.

"I don' know wha' I'd do if somethin' ever happened ta' ye'… I'd probably lose my mind.", he said, pulling away but still keeping his arms around me to look me in the eyes, "Yer' my everythin' Jemma, I couldn't live without ye'... I told ye' that I was goin' ta' save ye', Lord knows I almost did, an' if I didn't reach ye' in time, I wouldn't have bothered ta' open my parachute…"

His confession almost made me cry.

He would rather die with me than live without me.

I kept back my tears as I placed my palm gently on Fitz's cheek and murmured,

"You would've done that?"

He kissed me on my cheek and whispered,

"Yes. My world would be a very dark place without ye' Jemma…"

I let myself sink into his embrace, noticing how we seemed to fit together like two pieces of a puzzle.

"You do realize that I'll still have to come on this mission no matter what? I will try my hardest to stay out of harm's way as long as you promise me one thing."

He leaned forward and placed his forehead against mine, staring into my soul, whispering,

"Wha's that?"

"That you'll never let me go."

"I promise.", he murmured in reply.

I was amazed at how absolutely loving Fitz was now that we were more than just best friends and partners. My mind slipped back into a fantasy as he held me.

_Our hands were tied together in front of everyone with the Fitz family's traditional blue, gold, and black strip of tartan, binding my life to his and his to mine in the traditional Scottish marriage rite of handfasting._

"D'ye think that we'll end up bein' tha' serious couple or tha' engaged pair for tha' mission?"

"I don't care, as long as I'm with you.", I replied, still content with imagining myself as his bride.

I started daydreaming about our honeymoon and that led to my sexual fantasies in a matter of seconds.

"_Take me Leo!" _

"Wha' are ye' thinkin' now?", he asked.

I made up a quick lie.

"I was thinking about what type of dress I'll have to wear for the mission."

He pulled away and shook his head at me.

"No ye' weren't. I can tell when yer' not bein' honest. I know ye', an' yer' not insane over fashion unless it's tha' latest sort o' lab gear from tha' Sci-Ops catalog.", he said with a smirk, "Besides, yer' blushin', so it mus' be somethin' other than a ball gown."

I should've known that I could never get away with lying to him, he had known me far too long for that.

"Well, I'm sorry Fitz, sometimes I like to have my daydreams."

"An' that's all well an' good, but I want ta' hear about yer' daydreams…", he said.

I felt my face get hot.

"We've never kept secrets from each other, an' tha' only time I did was when it was about my collection o' dirty magazines… Ye' can tell me anythin'."

Maybe I should just tell him, after all, he did tell me that he got off to thoughts of me… I was just as guilty when I found myself ruining my knickers over a fantasy of him.

Then again, perhaps I shouldn't because of how society thinks. If a man says he gets off to thoughts of attractive women in sexual situations, people will still think of him as a pervert but less than a woman if she said something of that nature.

How would Fitz react if I told him that too often I would find myself lying awake at night with my hand between my legs, wishing it was him making me moan helplessly into my pillow.

Still, Fitz is, above all, my closest friend.

"Well, Fitz, sometimes I get… aroused… by my daydreams…", I began, not meeting his grey-eyed gaze.

"So ye' fantasize?", he asked in a low voice.

"Yes, I do…", I murmured, shuddering at his husky tone as I tried to keep myself from imagining how it would feel to jump his bones and shag his brains out.

"About what?", Fitz murmured, brushing his fingers down the sleeve of my lab coat, making it feel like he was burning right through the material and branding my skin, which was already super sensitized due to the tone of voice he was using.

I spun around and forced myself to look straight into his eyes, which had now darkened to a deeper shade of stormy grey.

"You and I."

The look on his face showed me the internal battle raging inside of him between decency and the more primal side that everyone possesses.

"Wha' am I doin' ta' ye' in these fantasies o' yers?", he asked, his Scottish accent bringing out the tone of desire in his voice.

Suddenly I felt like I was _living_ in one of my fantasies.

"All kinds of intimate things."

Fitz stepped closer and lowered his eyelids before murmuring in a highly aroused voice,

"D'ye eventually want me ta' do somethin' like that ta' ye'?"

"Why not?", I whispered before Fitz pressed his lips to mine and kissed me slowly yet intensely.

I moaned as he pulled me against his body and gently bit my lower lip.

The fire inside of my body was beginning to blaze out of control.

He walked me into the edge of a desk, and I ended up bumping into it harder than I thought.

We broke apart quickly a half second later when I heard the sound of glass breaking and felt something wet on my back.

I turned and gasped in horror as I noticed my test tube holder on the floor with all the test tubes broken and the chemicals mixing together then Fitz ripped my lab coat off.

"Jemma, one o' tha' beakers spilled down yer' back!", he yelped and I swore when I saw that, not only were the chemicals from my test tubes mixing on the floor, but that they had splattered on both of us.

"Fitz! These chemicals could produce lethal fumes when mixed, ", I cried, punching the lockdown button and turning on the exhaust fans, "and we got them on ourselves!"

We exchanged no words but ran straight into the back room of the lab where the emergency shower was, sealing the main lab room off so that the exhaust fans could take the fumes out.

Whoever designed this plane failed to realize that there may be a need for more than one shower and also a need for a separation or divider of sorts.

"You first Fitz.", I said, turning my back to him.

"Ye' got tha' chemicals all down yer back Jemma, ye' should go firs'!", Fitz said, "In any case, both o' us got them on ourselves an' there's only one shower here, damn tha' bloody designer ta' hell for it!", he swore, motioning towards the single stall.

"Fine then, we go at the same time!", I said, more concerned for our health than our feelings about seeing each other naked.

To show that I meant business, I pulled out my phone and ID badge, took off my watch, and pulled the rubber band out of my hair, placing the items on a table outside the shower. I stepped in and pulled the handle, starting the flow of lukewarm water while my clothes were still on (as we were supposed to do).

"Come on Fitz, before you get a chemical burn!", I said, starting to take off my wet clothes and tossing them into a plastic bin outside the shower.

Fitz followed me in after depositing his phone, watch, and wallet next to mine and began to undress too.

I turned away and took off my bra and slipped out of my remaining articles of clothing as I rinsed down and soaped up my hair.

I saw Fitz's trousers get tossed and then his boxer shorts with smiley faces on it followed.

"Jemma, could ye' pass me tha soap?", Fitz asked and I glanced over my shoulder at him to find him glancing back at me.

"Here you go.", I said handing him the soap bottle with slippery hands.

"Thanks.", he replied, taking the bottle.

"Jemma?", he asked as I soaped up my body with the remaining lather from my hair.

"What is it Fitz?", I asked.

"Would it be too strange if I told ye' that ye' are a very beautiful woman?", he asked.

I blushed and smiled.

"No, not at all. Would it be strange if I told you that you are a very handsome man?"

"Not a bit."

I tried to reach to lather my back but frowned when I found that I couldn't.

This was bad, especially since the chemicals got on my back.

_If only I had my back scrubber…_

"Uh Fitz, this may sound like an odd request to make, especially under these circumstances, but could you wash my back? I can't reach on my own…", I asked, slightly embarrassed, mainly because I had a small tattoo on my right shoulder blade that was sentimental in many ways.

"Uh, no problem…", Fitz replied as I glanced over my shoulder at him, purposefully covering my tattoo with my wet hair.

He turned around and his eyes got wide, sweeping up and down my body.

I didn't feel self-conscious at all when his eyes lingered on my bum because I expected him to look there, instead I felt a wave of heat pool in my abdomen.

In one of my deeply sexual fantasies, I imagined what it would be like to have Fitz take me in the shower and the way he was looking at me right now was getting me aroused.

"See something you like Fitz?", I asked with a smirk.

**Fitz POV**

My mind blanked temporarily as I heard those words come out of Jemma's mouth.

Of course I liked what I saw, she was perfect in my eyes.

Her body was better than I had imagined and I wanted to have this image of her branded into my memory.

I never knew that she was this curvy under all the clothes she wore, nor did I know that her creamy pale skin was flawless and it didn't matter if she was wearing clothes or not, I'd always found myself staring at her bum.

I felt myself getting hard just looking at her and I hoped that she wouldn't notice it.

"You're beautiful.", I murmured.

She blushed and moved her hair off of her back as I put soap in my hands to wash her off.

I looked at her again and saw a tattoo on her right shoulder blade.

"When did you get this?", I asked as I placed my hands on her shoulders and began to work up a lather.

"My tattoo?"

"Yeah.", I replied, tracing it with my finger.

It was a small heart shaped outline in black ink made up of really fancy looking lettering. The letters made up the names of everyone in her immediate family.

"It's the names of my family members.", she replied, "But I plan on adding more borders to it if I should marry at all in my lifetime."

My hands drifted down her back, and I was amazed at how soft and warm her skin was.

She started working conditioner into her hair as my hands drifted to just above her waist.

"Do you want me to stop?", I asked.

"Well I suppose so… I mean, you are done, right?"

"Yeah.", I replied, not wanting to take my hands off of her.

"Then you can stop.", she replied.

I trailed a finger up her spine and she shivered, emitting a soft moan that sent a shock of pleasure straight to my dick.

She looked at me over her shoulder and the first thing I noticed was that her light brown eyes had darkened to a rich chocolate, then I noticed how she was biting her lower lip and blushing.

My fingertips lingered at the place where her neck and spine met and I wondered how she would react to me running my fingers down her spine.

So I brushed my fingers down her spine again and I wasn't disappointed with the results.

She quivered and her eyes closed as she moaned again, only this time she moaned my name.

"Leo…"

She opened her eyes and smiled at me.

She was too damn gorgeous, and, in some small part of my brain, I knew that I couldn't give in to desire and show her how much I needed to feel her body pressed against mine.

"Jemma, you're so beautiful.", I murmured, "You have no idea how much you drive me crazy."

"I think I've got a pretty good idea…", she whispered in reply before rinsing the conditioner out of her hair.

I turned away from her and tried to think of terrible things to make my hard-on go away.

I gasped when a petite finger slid down my spine.

"Jemma, I don't think that's such a great idea…", I muttered.

Then I felt her delicate hands on my back, soaping it up.

"You got my back, now I'll get yours…", she said, her proper accent now full of desire.

She rinsed off my back and then I gritted my teeth as I felt her soft lips on my back, kissing along a lonely scar I had from the time when I fell down the steps at Sci-Ops.

Then it took all of my willpower to keep myself from turning around when I felt her breasts pressing into my back.

"Jemma... do you want me to do something I'll regret?", I asked as the thought of running my hands over her naked body flashed through my mind.

"Leo, you can show me how you feel, just as long as we don't actually do it in here…", she said

"Don't you want to take it slower?", I asked, really not wanting to take it slow, just doing the right thing and asking her permission before I did something that may or may not ruin our whole friendship.

"I've had these feelings for you since the Academy… If you were in my position and knew how many times I've brought myself off and wished it was you doing it, then you wouldn't hesitate either. If you feel that it's too soon for you, I'll understand and I'll happily wait.", she said.

I felt the same way and a calm fell over me as I realized she wanted this, that she wanted _me_.

"Can I-", I began, but she finished my sentence for me.

"Turn around? Of course…", she murmured.

I turned around and gazed into her eyes before looking at her body.

All my fantasies and magazines were nothing compared to her true beauty, in fact, the only thing about Jemma that was the same in both my imagination and reality was that she waxed her bikini line.

She had curves in all the right places, her breasts were the perfect size, and her pale skin was just as flawless on the front of her body as the skin on her back was.

"Jemma, you're beautiful…", I murmured, making her blush.

I crushed my lips to hers and tumbled headlong into a rush of penned up emotion.

Her hands were running over my chest and I delicately brushed my fingertips down the side of her perfect body, fearing that I would hurt her if I was too rough.

I kissed down the smooth column of her neck, mapping every elegant contour, memorizing every centimeter, committing the way she whimpered softly to memory.

I mouthed the sensitive place where her neck and shoulders met, wanting to mark her skin, to claim her as my own and I relished the way she threaded her delicate fingers through my hair.

I brushed my fingertips slowly over her breasts and smiled when she gasped as her nipples hardened under my caress.

"Leo…", she keened in a voice so sinfully perfect that I nearly came just from hearing it.

She gripped my hair, tugging just enough to make me groan.

"Yes Jemma?", I replied in a low voice, skimming my lips up her neck again until I felt her brush her smooth lips over mine.

She trailed a finger down my chest and I inhaled when she turned around and pressed her perfect backside into my hard on, grinding on it. I gripped her hips so hard that I probably bruised her.

It was my turn to moan her name and I did before nipping her shoulder, most likely leaving teeth marks in her silky flesh.

"You can touch me…", she moaned in consent before turning around, running her tongue along my lower lip, and rubbing my calf with her foot.

And I was close to doing just that when the water turned from hot to lukewarm to frigid in a matter of seconds.

My hard-on went soft in record time and the moment was ruined as we both yelped and stumbled out of the now icy cold shower.

Well, at least we got clean.

Jemma grabbed some towels and two robes as I shut off the shower.

I turned around to find her wrapping a towel around her chest and I dried off, wrapping my towel around my waist.

"So… Jemma…", I began awkwardly, not sure what to say now that we had been in a truly intimate situation.

She glanced at me, blushing furiously before stating,

"Well… _that_ happened…"

I nodded as she squeezed the water out of her hair in a towel.

"What now?", I asked.

"Well...I suppose we wait…", she replied, looking through the glass door into the lab.

I stood next to her and looked into the lab.

It was still in lockdown and I smiled when she gasped.

"Leo, did you build those?", she asked, pointing into the lab at my little 'Clean-Up' robots that were programmed to sense out chemical spills, broken glass, and other incidents like that before cleaning up the mess, disposing of the chemical waste properly, and testing the air quality for hazardous fumes and debris. I had them on little charging stations around the lab and set them up so that they would boot up when the emergency lockdown button was pressed and begin working a minute later.

"Yeah, I did.", I replied as she stared at them in wonder.

"I've never seen them before, were they always in there?", she asked, gazing at me.

"Well, I designed them so that their charging docks were under the lab tables and workbenches, out of sight and out of the way until they were activated. I built them years ago and they've been in every lab we've ever worked in together since Sci-Ops.", I replied, "In all honesty, I designed them for you… to keep you safe if something like this ever happened."

"Why didn't they come out when I was infected with that alien virus?", she asked.

"They only activate when the lockdown button is pressed. When you were infected, we had you in quarantine, not in lockdown, but they were on standby."

One of the robots zoomed over to the door where we were and projected the air quality and the estimated time of cleanup completion for us.

The air quality was almost back in the safe zone, but we would have to wait a few more minutes until cleanup was done.

"Should we try that again sometime?", I asked as I slipped into a robe.

She blushed and replied,

"Absolutely."

I crossed the room and wrapped my arms around her and we sank to the floor together.

I held her until the cleanup robot projected an all clear status and zoomed under a workbench until it was needed again.

Jemma stood up and put her watch, phone, and ID badge into the pocket of her robe and pulled on a pair of sandals before leaving the decontamination room. I followed closely and we walked right through the lab and up the steps to the main level of the BUS.

We didn't even make it to our bunks when Agent Coulson approached us with Skye and Ward.

"FitzSimmons, I trust the situation in the lab has been taken care of?"

"It has, Sir.", Jemma replied.

"Good. We need to compile an email with a list of items and send it to the Manila base that way we can have everything for the Paris mission before we're even there. Your cover descriptions have been received. Have you figured out which of you will play the part of the married or engaged couple?", he asked.

We hadn't discussed it yet.

I looked at Jemma who shook her head.

"No, we haven't.", Skye replied.

"Well who wants to?", Coulson asked.

Jemma piped up.

"I think that Agent Ward and Skye would be the best choice because they could pretend to have an argument about wedding colors or Ward's mother being too judgmental around the hosts and then excuse themselves to continue having their argument in a more private place, when really they would be going to snoop around and see what they could find out about the Noir's involvement with Centipede. They've been trained for this sort of fieldwork, Fitz and I haven't."

Skye nodded at Jemma.

"That's not a bad idea… it could work, I'm okay with being the fiancée or the young wife. What do you think Grant?"

"It sounds like a great plan. I'm with you on this.", he replied.

"Good, then its settled, Ward and Skye will be playing the parts of either Mr. Robert and Mrs. Emily Calvert, the married couple from Los Angeles or Mr. Nicholas Jones and Miss Veronica Ford, the engaged couple from Washington D.C..", Coulson said as he handed two folders to Skye and Ward before turning to Jemma and I.

"As for you two, you will be playing the parts of Mr. Cody Barclay from Scotland and Miss Lydia Fredericks from London.", he said, handing us our folders.

I finally spoke up.

"Um, Agent Coulson? Do you expect me to wear the Barclay colors?", I asked.

"You want to sell the act, right?", Coulson asked in reply.

"Well yeah."

"Then we'll need your measurements to have the kilt made.", he replied before adding, "I know that it means a lot if you were to put on another clan's colors, but you can do this."

I nodded, putting the topic to rest as a part of my conscience called me a traitor.

"Simmons? Skye? We need to get some options and measurements from you that way we can have your gowns bought and tailored for you when we land in Manila. We also need to order some shoes for you."

The two women nodded as Coulson walked away.

Skye and Ward went off in their own direction and I went to my bunk to get changed.

Just before I went into my bunk, Jemma stopped me.

"Wait, Leo…"

I turned around.

"Yes Jemma?"

She kissed me softly now and I felt her smile through it before she nipped my lower lip playfully and pulled away.

"Jemma Simmons, you're a tease.", I said with a smile.

She winked at me.

"You know you like it.", she smirked before walking away, putting an extra bit of sway in her hips.

As I closed my door, an emotional weight fell on me and only one word described the weight that turned my usually logic only brain into a swirl of God-knows-what just perfectly.

_Love._

Realization dawned on me.

_I've fallen hopelessly in love with Jemma Simmons._

I quickly got dressed and emerged from my room to find Ward, Skye, and Simmons waiting in the lounge.

"Fitz, we're going to learn how to dance.", Simmons said, "Ward's teaching us how, let's go."

I followed behind them, dying to tell Jemma Simmons that I was in love with her, but knowing that this was neither the time nor the place to do so.


	4. First Dance

**Skye POV**

I sat on the bottom step in the cargo/garage area, waiting for the dance lesson to start, tapping my high heels on the floor.

I looked into the lab and saw Fitz tinkering away at some tool while Simmons (who was also wearing a pair of high heels, but I could tell that she absolutely hated them) chattered on about some complex form of science.

There was something different about the way they looked at each other but I just brushed it off and figured that they were just practicing being Cody Barclay and Lydia Fredericks.

Grant and I had decided to be Nicolas 'Nick' Jones and Veronica 'Ronnie' Ford, the engaged couple, and that meant I had to wear an engagement ring.

Coulson had a ring on board for such occasions and the ring, although fake, was the prettiest and most expensive piece of jewelry that I had ever worn.

Grant had gone off in search of the portable speakers (there was an iHome in the lab but Fitz was currently using it as a charging station for his iPhone).

I gazed at the ring that Grant had pressed awkwardly into my palm with a mumbled, "Here you go…".

Some part of me wondered if he was as scared of messing up our partnership with this whole romance thing as I was.

I didn't read through the whole SHIELD handbook and code of conduct, but I'm pretty sure that there is something in there which bans fraternization between rookies and their SO's… If that was the case then Grant and I could be separated.

I pushed the thought of being separated from Grant out of my mind as I tapped my heels on the floor, not knowing whether I should be nervous or comforted by the prospect of being taught how to dance by Grant.

It was my first official dance lesson since the dance unit I was forced to do in my high school gym class.

That was one of the last classes I attended before I dropped out and focused on hacking and working part time so I could afford to keep my van.

Those were some hard times.

Looking back on my decision to drop out, I find myself wishing that I hadn't.

When I turned 17 and dropped out of school, I saved all of my records onto a flash drive and then wiped every trace of my very existence from every database, including the foster care system. I just couldn't take being bounced around from one foster home to another.

I gave up on making friends when I was in middle school because I would just end up moving to another foster home in a few months and leaving them behind. I was always alone and I grew up believing that there was nobody in this whole world who could possibly love me because none of the countless foster parents I had ever wanted me to stay.

Just thinking about those years made me sad because, no matter how many times I told myself that SHIELD had been the ones protecting me since I was an infant, I still couldn't shake off the little voice in my head telling me that I wasn't good enough and that nobody would ever love me.

Grant walked past me on the stairs and set up his phone and the portable speakers.

I felt hot tears threatening to spill over and I looked at my feet so that nobody would see me getting misty-eyed.

I felt Grant's hand on my shoulder and then he sat down next to me on the step.

"Skye, are you okay?", he asked in a voice so soft it actually surprised me.

I looked up and found him gazing at me with a look of concern.

My vision blurred as my tears welled up and I closed my eyes, trying to make the tears go away but I cursed internally when the tears rolled down my cheeks instead.

I looked away and squeezed my eyelids shut, my pride significantly bruised now that Grant had seen me cry.

Instead of pulling away like I expected him to do, I felt him place his hands on mine and give them a small squeeze.

"What's wrong?", he asked.

I didn't want to tell him my pathetic story or that I thought that I would never be loved, but those things had been with me forever.

"It's nothing.", I mumbled, shaking my head.

"Skye, it isn't 'nothing'… I can tell that you're upset… what's bothering you?", he replied.

I didn't look at him as I mumbled,

"My childhood was terrible and those memories come back to haunt me sometimes."

"I know the feeling all too well."

It took me a second to recall that Grant hadn't had the perfect childhood either.

Ever since the Berserker Staff incident, he would occasionally have nightmares and, since I would be awake anyway, I would hear him talking in his sleep about a well and having to save his little brother from his older abusive brother.

He had some issues too.

"I'll tell you about my bad childhood if you tell me about yours.", I said.

I would rather not be the only one spilling their guts about feelings and I'm sure that it was high time for Grant to get the weight of his memories off his chest.

"Deal. You first though.", he said, and I finally looked up at him.

"As a small child, I lived in St. Agnes's orphanage, when I started first grade, I entered the foster care system and remained in the system through my formative years. I never stayed in a foster home for more than a few weeks, my longest time in a home was two months when I was in the fourth grade and I loved it there.", I paused and bit back my tears.

"Was that the Brody family that you stayed with when you were nine?", Grant asked.

I shook my head.

"No. They were the family after the Brody's, the Dalton family, and they were good people. I had friends at school, they had an older daughter named Rachael who was adopted… I looked up to her as an older sister, and they had a dog too. I thought it would be my forever home just like it was for Rachael, but then they told me I was going to be sent to another home and that things weren't working out. I was devastated. After that, I grew to believe that nobody would ever love me and that nobody cared. I had hope that my parents were still alive somewhere but that was about it. I became distanced from the other kids my age and I turned to technology as a way to fill the void. Technology would always be the same when everything else was changing, all I needed was a floppy disk or a flash drive and I could take my hobby with me... it was a much-needed constant, especially when I didn't know where I would be in a few weeks… Nobody knew what happened to my parents and I wanted to learn the truth. I got tired of being bounced around in the system, so I dropped out of high school, deleted all my records, and started over as a hacktivist for the Rising Tide. Then you and Coulson found me and, well, here I am. I know the truth about my past and it scares me…", I said.

"You said that you grew to believe that nobody would ever love you and that nobody cared… thinking like that always comes with some heavy negative emotional weight, but to grow up believing that? I don't think I could have ever been able to carry on if I had that on my mind…", Grant said.

"So what about your bad childhood?", I asked.

"Well, I grew up in mainly Massachusetts as the middle child. My mom died giving birth to Edmund, my little brother, and I think that's why my older brother hated him so much, even if he did beat the crap out of us for no apparent reason. My dad tried drinking my mom's memory away and died of alcohol poisoning. My brothers and I went to live with my grandmother, or Gramsy, as I called her. Maynard, my older brother, would beat Edmund and I when he was angry, but he would hurt Edmund more than me. Maynard forced me to hurt Edmund and I would do whatever he said, not wanting to be on the receiving end of his abuse. Maynard made me throw Edmund into a well once. Edmund couldn't swim and was going into shock. I went to toss him the rope but Maynard told me not to save him unless I wanted to get thrown in too.", Grant paused and his hand tightened around mine before he continued, "That was the first time I ever hated Maynard with my whole being… I saved Edmund anyway and then I took up self-defense to protect Edmund from Maynard. When I joined SHIELD, I lost contact with Maynard but I stayed in touch with Gramsy. I haven't seen Edmund in ages, but every now and then I'll get a call or a letter from him."

His story was sad and I felt really sorry for him.

"I'm sorry that I asked…", I mumbled as a stray tear rolled down my cheek.

I went to wipe it away but Grant reached up and brushed it away instead, his hand lingering for a second on my cheek and leaving a warm spot when he pulled it away. I didn't want him to let go.

"It's fine… I feel worse about asking you what was wrong though... I mean, even if I knew that my parents were dead, I still knew that Gramsy loved all three of us boys, even Maynard when he was being a bully. I always knew that at least one person loved me."

We sat there in silence for what seemed like an eternity, even if it was only two minutes, until FitzSimmons emerged from the lab.

"So I guess we should get started?", I asked, standing up and walking into the open space.

"Yeah. Before we get started though, are you able to move?", Grant asked Simmons and I.

I nodded, completely comfortable in my high heels.

"I think I'll be fine… I just need to get used to these.", Simmons replied, wobbling a little as the words left her mouth.

"Alright, just take it easy, we don't want to get May upset if we have to send her in your place because you rolled your ankle.", Grant replied.

The biochemist nodded silently.

"Alright then. I suppose I should ask if any of you know how to dance already...", he trailed off and, to my surprise, Fitz stepped forward.

"I do, but jus' a wee bit. It's kinda hard ta' avoid learnin' those types o' things when yer' mum is a dance instructor.", he said with a shrug, "But I haven't danced in ages, so I'm pretty much useless…"

"Good to know.", Grant said, "I'll show you the box step first, this is the most basic part of any partner dance. Skye, can you help me out here?"

I walked over to him and he showed me where to step as FitzSimmons tried to get it right by observing us.

I focused on getting the steps yet I still messed up time and time again.

Grant was patient with me though.

"Okay, Skye, think of a mirror. You mirror what I do. When my left foot goes forward, your right foot goes back. You have the hold right. Try it again."

I tried it again and got it right.

Soon I could do the box step while traveling and then waltz with music.

FitzSimmons were waltzing perfectly with each other, and I swear that they are in a perpetual state of synchronization.

"Good work." , Coulson said, standing at the top of the steps, causing us to push away from each other abruptly. "I need to see Simmons and Skye up here, we need a selection of gowns to order. I also did some digging on the Noirs. Madeline Noir enjoys the tango, so definitely perfect that so that you can sweep her away with your skills. It'll be a great conversation piece, especially when used as a distraction. Fitz, I still need your measurements, we can't order the Barclay tartan and then have the kilt made, but we can get a black and gray formal premade kilt and then just have the clan emblem on the pin and the sporran. Ward, your all black suit is on base and it has been dry cleaned."

I followed Simmons up to the command center just as May came out of the kitchenette with a sandwich, stopping us for a second.

"Here are some things to consider when making your choices. Gowns with bigger skirts are great places to hide weapons, just don't make them too big. No neon colors, if something goes wrong and you have to run, neon colors will turn you into an easy target but black is a little too conspicuous, try some solid reds or blues with some glittery accents or even put some colored accents on black just so you seem normal. Since there will be two couples on this mission, I suggest that one of you wears a dress that's good for moving in, preferably with straps and a slit. And stay with your partner at all times. Do not split up, that makes you easier to get rid of. If you have to use the toilet, go with the other lady.", she said before walking away.

We went into the command center and gathered around the holotable.

"Now, do you have any ideas in mind?", Coulson asked.

Simmons spoke up.

"Since Skye and Ward will be doing most of the heavier lifting behind the scenes, maybe Fitz and I should be the distractions. Not many men wear kilts, so that's a distraction, and maybe a tighter gown with a slit would be nice, so that I can dance or even run if something should go wrong."

"Color?"

"Hmm burgundy sounds nice, red is a good color on me, if I do say so myself… Agent May said that dark reds were good.", she replied with a slight shrug.

I waited patiently as Simmons found her dress and then it was my turn.

"Skye?", Coulson asked, "What about you?".

I searched in silence, taking what May had said to heart, soon finding an adequate gown.

"Alright then, your gowns will be ready when we refuel again in Dubai. We have a few more refueling stops to make before we get to Paris.", Coulson checked his watch, "We land in Manila in an hour so get ready to disembark... we won't be staying on base as planned, we'll be in a hotel while the BUS gets a tune up, pack your bags."

We nodded and left the command center.

"I'll tell Fitz and Ward about the change of plans…", Simmons said cheerily as we went our separate ways at the bunks.

I closed the door behind myself and threw some things into an overnight bag.

I opened up my bedside table drawer and pulled out the small bag that my vibrator was in.

I couldn't help but let a wave of excitement pass through my veins as I held it, imagining how it would feel inside of me.

I closed my eyes and let myself drift in a fantasy, suddenly wondering how it would feel if Grant used my vibrator on me.

_It was dark and I was all alone._

_I was dressed in nothing but a black bra and panty set as I stood in the bedroom of my hotel room._

_I slipped the vibrator between my legs and pressed the tip to the front of my panties._

_I felt him come up behind me and pull the toy from my hand, his voice at no more than a possessive growl as he murmured,_

"_You should pay closer attention to your surroundings Skye… a move like that could get you killed…"_

_He pressed the tip to my panties and I moaned._

"…_Or compromised…", he muttered._

_My fingers threaded through his hair as he mouthed at my neck…biting me a little as I whimpered his name._

"_Grant… don't tease me…you know how badly I want you…"_

"_It isn't teasing if I intend to take you up on that offer…", he growled, picking me up and placing me on my bed._

I was so close to slipping my hand into my jeans when Grant knocked on my door.

"Uh, Skye, can I come in? We need to talk…"

I scrambled to put my vibrator in my overnight bag.

"Yeah, come in.", I replied.

**Ward POV**

I entered Skye's bunk and noticed that she had a very guilty look on her face.

I had to talk to her about some of the obstacles we would probably encounter on the mission and how we would work together to overcome said obstacles.

"Hey Grant.", she mumbled, not meeting my stare.

"Was I interrupting something?", I asked, nodding towards her overnight bag.

The conversation could wait until we had landed, it wasn't eminent.

"Well, no…not really…", she began and then I heard it.

A faint buzzing sound reached my ears and I racked my brain to give a name to the mystery sound.

"Skye… do you hear that?", I asked, stepping further into her bunk, trying to find the source of the noise.

"Grant… what are you—oh my God…", she began and then her face relaxed and her eyes widened in horror.

I saw her face pale and then turn beet red in a matter of seconds.

"So you hear it too?", I asked.

"Yeah. Ward, I can explain…", she began as I went to her overnight bag and pulled out small black bag on the top of the pile within.

I felt whatever it was vibrating and then I threw it down with a muffled yelp.

She had a vibrator on board and it was turned on in the bag.

_Oh God, what if I had just interrupted her personal time?_

"Skye, I am so, soooo sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt—I mean… well, um, that is if you _were_… well, you know…._using it…._", I became a flustered, babbling, awkward mess.

Skye closed the door to her bunk and reached in the small bag, turning off the slender black instrument.

"Grant, calm down.", she said.

"Okay.", I sighed and sat on her bed. "I just have a few questions."

She looked extremely embarrassed but sat next to me anyway.

"What do you want to know?"

"Were you in the middle of getting yourself off?", I asked, noticing how her pupils were blown wide and how she was still holding the vibrator in its bag.

"No, but I was having a few thoughts…", she replied.

"If you don't mind me asking, what were you thinking about?", I asked, knowingly ignoring my conscience as it screamed, _"Grant! You moron, you don't ask people what they were thinking of when they're turned on!"_ and treading into uncharted waters.

"Well, uh, you… using it on me.", Skye mumbled, motioning to the vibrator in her hand.

I don't know what surged through me at that point but I just felt like kissing her and showing her exactly what I would do to her with that vibrator.

I wanted to be that guy that she could go to for anything and after hearing her full story, how she thought she didn't deserve to be loved, I just wanted to hold her and tell her that she does deserve to be loved.

I wanted to prove to her that she was loved in any way I could, and maybe, _just maybe_, kissing her right now would be the start of all that.

I felt myself reaching out to her and I saw her reaching back as time seemed to slow down.

I felt her slender fingers curl around my biceps and I drowned in the twin pools of warm brown that were her eyes.

She bit her lower lip in her habitual way… I swear, that little bite would be my undoing… just the way her lip would bloom with color after she released it from between her perfect white teeth drove me crazy… it was one of the first things I noticed about her when Coulson and I practically abducted her and it was one of the things about her that would never cease to make my heart race.

"Grant…", she whispered as I placed my hands on her waist, her eyes never leaving mine.

"May I?", I whispered as we got closer, breathing in the heady scent of her jasmine and lavender shampoo that was mingled with the spicy scent of her arousal.

She nodded and closed her eyes.

I closed my eyes and was lost in darkness, closing the gap until I felt the soft brush of her lips on mine, gentle, warm, and sweet.

She was like heaven and I felt myself pulling her closer.

She pulled away and blushed.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have done that…", I muttered.

"_Way to go, now she'll be requesting a new SO and filing a sexual harassment/assault case against me… I'll be put to work behind a desk as a pencil-pusher, never to go into the field again…"_, I thought to myself as I got up to leave her bunk.

"Wait, Grant…", Skye began and I turned around.

She crashed her lips into mine and swept me away.

I found myself kissing her back, letting her steer me into the side of her bed before taking me down so I was laying on her bed. Then she got on top of me and straddled my waist.

I was surprised but I wasn't complaining either, rather groaning when I felt myself hardening beneath her.

She moaned when she felt my hardened member against her, choosing to grind her pelvis into it.

I gripped her hips and she broke the kiss long enough to breathe before placing a trail of feather light kisses down my jaw and pressing her lips to my Adam's apple.

I groaned as she bit my neck gently, mixing a tiny bit of pain in with the pleasure I was feeling.

"Skye…."

"_What are you doing Grant? __**You **__should be romancing __**her**__! Not the other way around… she wants to play a little dirty? Put the ball in her court and play dirty back.",_ my conscience yelled from the part of my brain that was still working.

I flipped her over and she gasped as I bared my teeth on her pulse point, feeling her heartbeat accelerate.

She pushed her hips up into my hard-on and I ran my fingers through her hair.

I stared into her eyes and something shifted in the both of us in that instant.

No words were spoken, but I knew that we were thinking along the same lines for once.

She gave me a slight nod and I kissed her softly before pulling back to look her in her deep brown eyes again.

I had never fallen head-over-heels for a woman before, but there was a certain sadness, a complex loneliness, and an insatiable hunger for understanding in her eyes that made me love her.

_I'm in love with Skye… and it's got to be the greatest feeling in the world…._

I pushed my hips into hers, kissing her slowly with all of the passion I could muster, hearing her whimper softly as I began to set a steady pace with my hips, grinding them into her pelvis through our clothes. She moaned my name as she wrapped her legs around my waist.

"_Grant…"_

I placed my forehead against hers, and she closed her eyes.

I was about to let the words, "I love you.", roll off my tongue when May came over the intercom.

"Please fasten your seatbelts, we begin our descent into Manila in three.", she said calmly.

Skye blushed at me as I got off of her and adjusted my clothes and hair.

"Sorry I dry humped you like some horny teenager and gave you _that_…", she muttered, motioning towards the rod in my pants.

"It's no problem…I'll just let it go away on its own…", I mumbled, now embarrassed because of the way I _manhandled _her.

"Oh, I almost forgot… you wanted to talk to me about something…", she said, fixing her hair.

"Yeah…", I said, but then realized that I forgot what I had to tell her.

"Did you forget?", she asked as she put her vibrator into her overnight bag and zipped it up.

"Well…", I began, and then remembered what I had to say, "I wanted to tell you about some of the things we may encounter on the mission."

"Like obstacles?", she asked.

"Exactly.", I replied.

Skye opened up the door to her bunk and looked around.

FitzSimmons could be heard talking in the kitchenette and Coulson was doing something in his bunk with his back turned, no doubt packing an overnight bag, so nobody saw or heard Skye and I emerging from Skye's bunk.

"Beginning descent in one.", May said and the seatbelt light came on.

Everyone went into the lounge area and strapped into their seats. I took the window seat and Skye sat facing me.

"So what types of obstacles will we face?", she asked.

"There will be guards all over the place, our backstories have to be perfect, and making a smooth getaway is always the hardest part of any mission… you saw firsthand what type of problems can happen when there's no extraction plan.", I replied.

She nodded.

"Grant? What do we do if we get split up?", Skye asked.

"If people are pursuing you, run into the nearest crowd of people to lose your attackers and then make your way to the rendezvous point… if you're cornered, stand your ground and don't give or tell your attackers anything. All of us will be wearing trackers and coms, so someone will come to you. The dresses will have bulletproof panels put into the torso pieces, so you have some degree of protection in your favor.", I replied.

Skye looked over at where Coulson and FitzSimmons were sitting.

Coulson was playing Flappy Bird on his phone and FitzSimmons were watching tango tutorial videos on a tablet. All of them had ear buds in.

She lowered her voice as we lost altitude and I could see the worry behind her eyes.

"What if I mess up?", she asked, "I don't want to be a disappointment…"

I reached across the table to where her hand rested and placed my hand over her smaller one.

"You won't be a disappointment. I've seen what you can do, trust me, you've come a long way from being the pseudo-anarchist hacker you once were…", I replied.

"I know I've changed, but I always wonder if this path… the path I chose when I agreed to be your rookie and to join SHIELD, I wonder if I'll ever be a great agent like you or May or Coulson someday…", she said, wistfully looking out of the window as we gently dropped out of the clouds.

"You'll be a great agent one day, trust me…Yes, it will take years of hard work and dedication to become the superior agent you want to be, but I believe that, one day, you'll have a rookie of your own and I'll be more than your SO, I'll be a friend and a colleague…", I replied, secretly hoping that someday she would be much more than just my rookie, friend, and colleague.

I heard her mutter,

"Yeah but I'll never be more than that…"

I brushed my thumb over the back of her hand and murmured exactly what I was thinking at that moment.

"But I do want you to be more than that…"

She looked at me with a blank expression.

"What did you say?"

I stared right into her beautiful brown doe eyes when I took a deep breath and braced myself.

"Skye, I _do_ want you to be more than just my friend, rookie, and colleague… do you think we can give an actual relationship a try?", I asked, making sure that Coulson and FitzSimmons didn't hear me.

My heart crawled into my throat as I waited on her response.

She beamed and her smile brightened the room again for what seemed like the first time in weeks. It was like seeing her genuine smile for the first time all over again.

"I'd like that.", she replied, giving my hand a squeeze as the BUS touched down.

"Thank you for flying with SHIELD, and welcome to Manila."


	5. Horizontal Tango

**Fitz POV**

"Fitz, can you give me a hand with this?", Jemma asked as she motioned towards her overnight 'bag'.

"You know we're only staying here for two days at most right?", I asked with a smirk.

She sighed.

"I'm so sorry… I'm rubbish when it comes to packing light and it has all of my laundry in there, so it's extra heavy… I'll carry it..."

She went to pick up the bag but I stopped her.

"Allow me… you go get the DWARFs, I'll take your bag."

"Did you bring the tools so that we can work on them?", she asked, retrieving the large box that housed our robots and their tablets.

I nodded as we piled into the short bus and left the base.

May drove while Coulson took shotgun, Ward and Skye sat in the middle row of seats, while Jemma and I sat in the very back.

As we drove, Coulson spoke to us.

"May, the BUS needs more than just a standard tune-up. It's going to be inspected for safety and while that's going on, the air filters will be replaced, the sewage tanks will be emptied, the water tanks will get refilled, the upholstery and carpets will get cleaned, the pantry and fridge will be restocked along with the cleaning supplies and toiletries."

May nodded.

"Ward, the armoury will be restocked with more ammunition."

"Got it."

"Skye, your new phone is waiting for you at the hotel and a few new apps were installed on your laptop."

"Oh, cool… they aren't SHIELD monitoring systems are they?", she asked.

"No, they're the apps for the SHIELD Handbook, the SHIELD Code of Conduct, and the SHIELD Encyclopaedia. All of them are for you to study that way Agent Hand will stop complaining about me having someone on my team who doesn't know the rules.", Coulson replied. "It has a few systems to monitor activity, but I have a feeling that you'll delete them, so I didn't bother. Just leave the SHIELD-616 system on there because that's the basic system. Without it, you wouldn't be able to view the SHIELD apps."

"Thanks AC."

"No problem. FitzSimmons, the decontamination shower is going to be expanded. I'm having another set of shower fixtures, a divider, and two curtains installed so that you two don't have to shower together if you have another lab accident. The dendrotoxin you ordered is on its way."

I glanced sideways at Jemma who was blushing, no doubt remembering the passionate things we were doing to each other not even a mere twelve hours ago.

"Fitz, the premade kilts don't come in your size, so we've ordered a suit for you. It's simple, just plain black. Simmons bought a burgundy gown, so I suggest wearing your red dress shirt and borrowing a black tie from Ward or myself if you don't have one already."

I nodded at Coulson, who was looking at us through the rear-view mirror.

"And everyone's mail is waiting for them at the hotel.", Coulson finished as he put on a pair of dark sunglasses.

We rode in silence for the remainder of the trip, but all I could think about was the beautiful biochemist sitting beside me.

I stole a glance at her through my peripherals and saw her biting her lip while she toyed with a button on the cuff of her left sleeve.

She was deep in thought and I could see the wheels turning in her mind.

We arrived at the hotel a few minutes later and Jemma was still deep in thought.

I got out of the short bus and held the door for Jemma, who smiled at me.

We went in the lobby and over to the desk so we could get the keys for our reserved rooms.

We would all be in our own rooms on the same floor.

The hotel we were staying in was one of those five star places with all the amenities, a rather posh place in comparison to the other hotels we've stayed in while the BUS was being repaired.

We rode up to our floor together and went our separate ways, but before I went into my room, Jemma handed me the travel case for the DWARF robots and said,

"I sent a link to your phone for an exceptionally good tango tutorial that I wanted to try tomorrow."

She went to leave but I put down my bags and caught her wrist in my hand.

I wanted to tell her how I felt about her. My heart was beating into overdrive and my mouth got dry.

"Jemma?"

She stared back at me with her intelligent brown eyes.

"Yes Leo?"

"I… I, uh… just wanted to say…", I tried to tell her, but the words got caught in my throat.

"Leo, just tell me…", she said softly.

"Well, okay… I just wanted to say that, uh, I… I can't wait to work on the DWARF robots with you later.", I blurted out, cursing myself inwardly as the words left my mouth.

She blinked a few times.

"Oh, okay then… I suppose I should get settled into my room first, maybe do a cycle of wash, and then I'll come over at around half past five to work on the DWARF robots. Does that sound okay?", she replied.

I released her wrist and nodded.

"That sounds like a plan, maybe we can have some dinner then too. Well, see you in an hour and a half…", I said, hastily opening the door to my room and toting my things inside.

I saw Jemma retreating into her room across the hall and closed my door.

My room was spacious and I noticed a sizeable stack of mail on the desk by the window.

"_Mum probably wrote me a thousand letters."_, I thought as I sat my bag down and crossed the room to see what I had.

Mum did write quite a few letters, but I would read them later.

I flipped through the science and technology magazines I received before coming across a few titles that made me raise my eyebrows.

A few pieces of Simmons's mail ended up in my stack and I glanced at them in surprise. These were magazines that I didn't think she read (save for the Sci-Ops Catalogue), much less subscribed to, because they were 'misogynistic' and 'superficial', but, sure enough, I found the newest issues of 'Cosmopolitan', 'Vogue', and 'Elle' in my pile of mail with her name in the addressee space.

I then came across the tell-tale black wrapping on the January/February double issue of Playboy Magazine.

I stood there, wondering if I should open it or just throw it out, I would terminate my subscription either way.

I shrugged and set it aside, still deciding whether or not to read it, in the meantime, I decided to unpack and do some laundry.

I glanced at my watch some time later and saw that it was four o' clock on the dot.

I picked up the Playboy and sat down in the desk chair, drawing the window curtain shut before ripping the plastic off the magazine.

This issue was definitely appealing to me and I found myself getting hard as I read the article titles.

This was no ordinary Playboy with just some models in lingerie, this was different.

Instead of just having models in lingerie, they had models in the classic bunny suit as well as other uniforms. It was the 60th anniversary issue and they would be recreating poses from vintage issues.

I flipped through, working myself up, slipping my trousers and boxers around my ankles to get a better grip.

I stopped dead when I came across the one photo that almost made me lose control.

The model was naked except for a pair of lab goggles, high heeled shoes, and a pristine white lab coat. I imagined Jemma in this pose and grabbed a few tissues hastily as I got closer and closer.

I could've sworn I heard a faint gasp, but it was probably just in my imagination.

"_Jemma…"_, I groaned loudly, not giving a damn who heard me because I was too far gone.

Her moans from earlier were echoing in my head and I could've sworn I heard her saying my name I pushed myself over the edge and came.

"_Jemma!"_

I panted as I slowly came back to reality.

There was a knock at the door and this time I definitely heard Jemma saying my name, only she was worried.

"Leo? Are you okay?"

I cursed as I hurriedly cleaned myself off, opened up the curtains, and went to put the magazine into my pile of mail, but in my discombobulated state, I knocked the stack off the desk instead, my Playboy and Jemma's magazines included.

"Bloody hell…", I muttered, picking up the stack of jumbled up mail and putting it all on the desk.

I glanced at the clock and it was 5:28.

For one fleeting moment, I positively abhorred Jemma's constant punctuality.

"Leo, if you don't answer me, I'm getting Ward to kick down this door!"

"Yeah, just hold on a sec, I'm coming…", I replied, fixing my appearance and washing my hands.

I ran to the door and yanked it open.

"Here I am, sorry about the holdup…", I greeted and gestured for her to come in.

She gave me a quizzical look as she entered.

"Leo, are you sure you're okay?", she asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine… why do you ask?", I replied, sitting down at the small table where the DWARF case was opened.

She sat down across from me and replied,

"I heard you making incoherent noises and thought you were about to be physically ill, but then I heard you groan my name and I got worried because I couldn't tell if you were in pain or what, so I called your name a few times just to see, and when you didn't answer the door, I feared the worst and started panicking."

I met her gaze and found her studying my features. I could tell she was diagnosing me so I glanced over at my desk and remembered her mail.

"I have some of your mail… it must've been mixed up with mine…", I said, getting up and going over to the desk.

To my horror, she followed me.

"Ooh, let's see what I got…", she said.

"Sorry things got a bit jumbled…", I muttered, looking for her mail, when I noticed one of her magazines, the Sci-Ops Catalogue, poking out from underneath a few letters.

She grabbed it and then gasped as my Playboy fell out from between the pages of the Sci-Ops Catalogue.

"Really Leo? You have another one?", she asked rhetorically, and this time the disappointment in her voice cut me open like one of her razor sharp scalpels.

I looked at her and cringed internally at the look on her face.

"I'm sorry, it came in the mail and I was going to throw it out but…", I said, but she raised her hand and silenced me.

"Were you tossing off when I heard you saying my name?", she asked in an emotionless voice.

"Yes.", I replied.

"Why didn't you throw it out?", she asked.

"I—I don't know… call it what it was, an err in judgment, but please understand that I'm only human.", I replied, not knowing what else to say.

She picked up the Playboy and opened it up, leafing through it with a blank expression on her face.

"All of these models are perfect…and yet you imagine me in their places?", she asked softly.

"Well, yeah…"

"They are much prettier than me…", she mumbled, flipping through.

I pulled the magazine from her grasp and tossed it aside.

"Don't sell yourself short…", I murmured, hating when she would cut herself down.

"I just can't see what you see.", she said, "You say I'm beautiful and I start believing that I am, but then you turn around and toss off to pictures of those perfect women and I have a hard time believing you…"

I finally understood why she was disappointed in me for having the magazines, it wasn't only because she thought I wouldn't need them, it was because I kept building her up and tearing her back down again without knowing it.

"Jemma, you are beautiful and I never meant to hurt you like that…", I said, glancing to the DWARF robots and recalling why I named them that way (they weren't just Drones Wirelessly Automated to Retrieve Forensics, as their acronym suggested).

I walked over to the DWARFs and booted them up, flying them one by one over to Jemma, where they hovered around her head.

If she didn't think I was being honest, I would prove her wrong.

She gazed at them and a ghost of a smile graced her lips.

"Leo, what are you doing?", she asked softly.

"You remember when we built them in Sci-Ops?", I asked.

She nodded.

"They were a part of our first collaborative project. You wanted to name them after the seven dwarves from Snow White, and we did.", she replied.

"Snow White was the first Disney movie we watched together.", I said, "But I didn't want to name them after the dwarves for that reason alone."

She glanced at me.

"Oh? Why did you want them to be named after the dwarves then?", she asked sitting cross-legged on the floor as the DWARFs flew around her.

I crossed the room and sat next to her.

"Well, I could see the similarities between the fairy-tale and our work."

"How so?", she asked, tilting her head slightly.

"The Sci-Ops facility was like the scary woods, nobody really knew what would happen there, or if we would make it out in one piece. Our lab was like the little cottage, it was messy and unkempt until you came in and tidied the place up while I was working on the blueprints and you hummed… we made seven robots and during flight calibration tests, they all but destroyed the lab. We cleaned up together and you hummed while we worked again…then I realized something about you that set you apart from the other female agents of SHIELD."

"What?"

"You were, by far, the fairest of them all."

She gave me a small smile and blushed.

"If I'm the fairest of them all, then what does that make you?", she asked.

"Just an admirer.", I replied. "Nothing more."

"If I asked nicely, would you consider being Prince Charming?", she asked.

I flew the drones back to their box and powered them down.

"Would I make the cut?", I asked, picking up the Playboy and tossing it in the trash.

She grinned broadly and made my heart beat faster.

I wouldn't tear her down anymore.

"Leo, of course you would make the cut…", she said, scooting closer to me, "You're the only one that _could_."

Jemma was so forgiving and I knew that she couldn't stay mad at me for very long, just like I could never have an argument with her without feeling like a real git afterwards.

"I'm sorry I was being such a dimwit…", I apologized, feeling like my simple apology wasn't enough to say.

"You weren't being a dimwit.", she replied, slipping her small hand into mine.

"I couldn't even figure out why my best friend was mad at me... If that wasn't a prime example of me being daft, I don't know what is."

We sat in silence for a minute and the shadows lengthened as the sun started to set over the horizon, lighting up the sky with its red blazing light.

"Leo, I saw that one pose in the magazine… with the scientist… was that the one you liked?", she asked softly, laying her head on my shoulder as her delicate fingers traced the rough planes of my hands in an almost reverent manner.

"Yeah.", I replied before we lapsed into silence again.

"Why do you like me?", she asked, "I've always wondered why you've stuck around after all this time?"

Her question caught me off guard and I answered without hesitation, saying the first things that came to mind.

"You make me smile. You were my friend and you were there for me when I needed someone to relate to. You just do something to me…"

She tipped her head up and pressed a delicate kiss to my jaw.

"When we moved into that flat on the Sci-Ops campus, I thought I would never feel at home there,", she whispered, "you made it feel like home to me…".

I shifted slightly and ended up kissing her.

It wasn't at all like the kisses we shared in the lab or in the shower, there was no restless need or hungry passion behind it, there was just a single raw emotion that was identical to what I had felt earlier on the BUS when I realized I was in love with Jemma… what if she loved me back?

She made the faintest sound of approval and moved to deepen the kiss, one hand on my chest, the other in my hair.

I moved us so that we were on our knees and then, without breaking the kiss, we stood, our bodies working in harmony.

She pulled back and settled into my arms.

Jemma whispered my name softly, and I kissed her again, this time with more intensity.

She responded to it and pressed her small figure into my body, the shared unknown feeling between us intensifying by the second.

We stumbled back into the open door of my bedroom and my knees gave out when they hit the edge of the king sized bed.

If this had been our intended destination, then so be it.

I half crawled into the middle of the mattress, kicking off my shoes and hearing the tell-tale thud of them hitting the floor, closely followed by two more thuds as Jemma's shoes followed.

We were both embracing on our knees in the middle of the bed, still kissing each other like the oxygen around us didn't exist and the only thing in the whole world that could keep us alive was each other's kiss.

Jemma loosened the tie around my neck before untying it altogether, tossing it aside as she worked to unbutton my shirt.

My fingers skimmed up her sides, untucking her blouse and placing my hands on her smooth skin below the fabric before fumbling with the tiny buttons on her blouse.

She broke away from me and unbuttoned her blouse swiftly before pulling the material off of her body and leaving her in her capris and her plain white bra.

I brushed my fingertips down the side of her exposed torso, still enjoying the way her skin felt under my touch. I was getting hard as her small hands roved over my body.

She slowly unbuttoned my shirt and I marvelled at her, the red sunlight streaming through the window making her pale skin glow and bringing out every natural highlight in her hair. I reached behind her as she tossed my shirt aside and gently pulled the elastic loop out of her hair, watching as her soft auburn tresses fell about her shoulders.

She ran her hands over my chest and whispered,

"Is this okay?"

"Is what okay?", I asked, perfectly content with her hands on my chest.

"The two of us… doing this with each other… Is it okay what we're doing? I don't want this to be just a quickie…"

I saw the worry in her eyes and a small part of my soul died.

I wrapped her in my arms.

"Jemma, I think it's okay… I'm not looking for a quick shag... I don't _want _that… I want something meaningful…", I looked her in her eyes and cupped her face, "I want to make love to you…"

She smiled and murmured,

"You do?"

I nodded, finally feeling like I could tell her how I felt about her.

"I love you, Jemma, I always have."

She smiled and replied,

"Oh Leo, I love you too."

We kissed each other, soft and slow, taking our time with undressing the other.

This wasn't my first time having sex, nor was it Jemma's, but there was something about this time that made my other sexual encounter look like Lieutenant Hill's stick figures being compared to the Mona Lisa.

My other encounter was sloppy, nervous, unsure, and rushed. Nobody knew what the other wanted or liked. It was like she and I were speaking two different languages. I was ashamed that I had actually lost my virginity in that way.

Jemma and I knew what the other one liked, we moved together, and we had always spoken the same scientific language. As she left a love bite on my collarbone, placing her mark on me, I truly felt like everything she did was poetry in motion.

I unclasped Jemma's bra and let it slip down her arms as she unbuckled my belt.

I touched her breasts and she moaned my name as I kissed her clavicle and rolled her nipples gently between my fingers. I trailed my lips down to her left breast before I made her yelp as I sucked her nipple in between my lips, baring my teeth against the hardened flesh and groaning as she tugged on my hair.

I repeated the action on her other breast and my name fell from her lips a few more times.

I released her and kissed back up to her lips as she pushed my trousers off and I kicked them across the room.

I laid her down gently before kissing down the side of her body to her waist, unbuttoning her capris and pulling them down her legs. She carded her fingers through my hair as I kissed back up her beautiful body.

She whimpered, "Leo please…", and bucked her hips into mine.

I hooked my thumbs in the waistband of her plain white knickers and pulled them off before tossing them aside and leaving her naked and wanting beneath me.

I gazed down at her and marvelled at her body again, a small pang of guilt making my heart sink as I realized that I had indeed left bruises on her hips from this morning. I gazed up at her before kissing her bruises and murmuring my apologies for being too rough on her.

As if to tell me that all was forgiven, she pulled my boxers off and released my hardened member. I shuddered as she stroked it a few times and she rubbed her thumb over the head, making me groan her name in a state of intense pleasure.

She kissed me and I ran my hand down her body before it was her turn to whimper and groan as I pushed my index finger over her folds, teasing her clit, before slipping my finger into her silky wet heat.

"Oh my God… _Leo_…", she moaned from beneath me as I slid another finger into her to curl my fingers against her g spot.

She was bucking her hips into my hand and I kissed her fiercely as I felt her feminine muscles contracting around my fingers.

I slipped them out of her, making her groan impatiently before finding her clit and stroking it.

Her moans were growing louder and she begged me to stop teasing her.

I reached into the side drawer where I had stashed my wallet and grabbed a condom out.

Jemma tore the foil open with her teeth and rolled the thin latex down onto me, gazing up at me through her thick lashes as I stroked down the side of her body.

I rolled her onto her back and got on top of her, gazing for any sign of fear or doubt in her beautiful brown eyes.

"Leo… take me…"

This was really happening, I was really going to make love to her.

I slid in slowly and we both gasped; I gasped at how tight and hot she was, she gasped at the stretch.

I could tell that I had hurt her a little by the way she emitted a barely audible whimper and I murmured soft, loving words into her ear with the aim to help her overcome whatever pain I caused her.

For a moment, I didn't feel like Agent Leopold Fitz, the engineering genius from Glasgow who worked with Agent Jemma Simmons, the brilliant biochemist from London.

For a moment, it didn't matter if I worked in a mobile laboratory on board the same plane as a woman who jumped out of a plane to save her friends from electrocution, a man who had quite literally risen from the dead, a woman who could end your life in the blink of an eye, a man who was an emotional robot, and a woman who could hack through any firewall in less time than it took for you to ask her 'how long will this take?'.

In this moment, I was just Leo and she was just Jemma.

Just a man and a woman who desperately needed each other.

And right now, the only one who existed to me was her.

She was my everything.

**Simmons POV**

I gasped as Leo entered me. He was well endowed and I had to stretch to get used to him. I'm not a virgin, but I haven't had sex since my first time, and that was six years ago, so I wasn't used to this.

It did hurt a little and I gasped at the sensation.

Leo could tell it was a little painful and he whispered sweet nothings in my ear between light kisses.

I gazed up at him, the red sunlight bathing him in a pink glow as his expression showed nothing but tender affection.

"Are ye' okay?", he whispered, pressing his lips to my forehead.

I nodded, the pain had only been fleeting, and I thrust my hips up into his gently, encouraging him to move.

He placed his forehead on mine and began to move, slowly at first but then gradually picking up the pace.

He hit my g spot with every thrust and I wrapped my legs around his waist to pull him closer, but my movement sent him deeper inside of me and I cried out in pleasure.

"Jemma… how on earth do ye' feel so good?", he groaned as I flexed my feminine muscles around him.

He went faster and I began to moan louder, feeling the waves of my orgasm approaching.

"Leo… oh God… I'm gonna…", I panted, tripping over my words.

"Go on Jemma…", he growled huskily in his deep Scottish brogue, placing a kiss on my lips and gazing into my eyes.

He slipped a hand in between our bodies and, just when I felt as though I couldn't be closer to my climax, he brushed the rough pad of his thumb over my clit and pushed me over the edge.

The next few minutes were a blur as I climaxed, digging my nails into Leo's back.

"LEO! OH GOD!", I screamed, arching my back off the mattress.

When I finally came back to my senses, the silence seemed deafening.

I glanced up at Leo who was still on top of me, gazing into my eyes.

I saw him smirk before he whispered,

"Sorry Jemma, I'm not God… Jus' Leo Fitz…"

Leo shifted, still buried inside of me, and still hard.

"You didn't come?", I asked in a voice that was hoarse from screaming, worrying that he was dissatisfied with me for not living up to his expectations.

He shook his head, slipping out of me, leaving me empty and unsatisfied as he disposed of the condom before joining me again in bed.

I wanted this to be good for him too, and he didn't even get to have his release.

He kissed me softly before whispering,

"Was it good?"

If I wasn't just catching my breath after making love to Leo and if my brain hadn't turned to mush, I probably would've replied by telling him that it was the best I've ever had (and probably the best I ever will). But since my mind was still mush and I was still unsatisfied, a saucy flame was ignited inside of me instead.

I suddenly needed to feel him inside of me again, only this time I didn't care how good it would feel for me, all I wanted was to please him, to _prove _to him that he was the best. A new wave of energy filled my body and I found the strength to move.

I don't know how I managed to do it, but I rolled him over so that he was on his back and I was on top of him.

I straddled his hips so that my bum was just touching his half-hard member and so my hands were on his chest.

There was a look of surprise in his eyes and he gasped.

"Jemma, wha' are ye' doin?"

I leaned down and kissed him hard, muffling his question. I smiled as he gripped my hips, one hand squeezing my bum firmly as he pushed his tongue into my mouth.

Our French kiss continued for a few more moments until I came up for air.

He went to speak, but I pressed a finger to his lips, silencing him.

"Leo, you didn't get to have your release… think of this as an experiment we're doing… I want to do what every good scientist does when their constants are uneven… I want to balance them out to find accurate results..."

His eyes darkened as I rubbed my bum against his now fully hardened cock.

"Chris' woman… do ye' know wha' yer' doin' ta me?", he growled, his voice heavy with desire making me extremely wet.

I slid down his body and stroked his cock, making him groan incoherently.

I had half a mind to bring him off with my mouth, but I had never given a blowjob, so I put the idea out of my mind, not wanting to disappoint him if I didn't do it well.

"Oh yes… I know _precisely _what I'm doing…", I replied seductively (before today, I didn't think I could actually do that), "I'm showing you how good it was…"

I moved back up his body, and teased him by rubbing my opening over the head of his cock.

"Jemma…", he moaned, "Yer' drivin' me absolutely insane…"

"Do you need something Leo?", I purred, sinking down so only the head of his cock was inside of me.

"A condom, for starters… tha' one we jus' used was my las' one…", he groaned.

"We're both clean, I'm on the three-month birth control injection, and it's too early in my cycle for me to be ovulating.", I stated, rocking my hips slightly, "If you want to go ask Ward or Coulson for a condom, then you can…".

He thrust up into me and I gasped.

"Not a chance woman…", he growled and I think he knew what type of things he could do to me just by speaking in that tone.

I removed him from my body and leaned forward as he swore.

"Don' be a tease…ye' know how impatient I get…", he growled in reply, "Ye' don' wanna anger tha' bull 'cause …"

"It isn't teasing if I plan on making you come…", I interrupted before moaning helplessly as he cupped my breasts and brushed his thumbs over my super sensitive nipples, a devious grin gracing his lips at my reaction.

"…ye' don' wanna get tha' horns…", he growled in my ear in a low, sinful voice that sent chills down my spine.

His victory was short-lived as I impaled myself on him and began rocking my hips at an agonizingly slow pace.

He felt so good naturally and I moaned as my clit brushed his pubic bone.

His loud moans filled the air and my name was interchanged with that of the Almighty.

"Oh Leo… is this what you want?", I moaned as I braced my hands on his chest, the new angle of entry causing him to hit every sensitive spot within me, both coming and going.

"Yes…", he growled between his teeth, gripping my hips firmly and thrusting up into me as I sank down onto him, the contrary motion making me cry out.

I braced my hands on the headboard and willed myself to keep moving, feeling my second orgasm approaching.

I flexed my feminine muscles experimentally and smiled when I heard Leo gasp.

My name was chanted like a prayer on his lips and I let his name roll off my tongue just as frequently as the waves of pleasure got stronger.

"Jemma… I'm close… please tell me that yer' close too…", he groaned.

I nodded before I looked him in his eyes and saw how his irises were almost black with passion.

I arched my back as he thrust into me two more times and then he practically roared my name as he came inside of me. His release triggered mine and I followed him over the edge, laying down on his chest as I shuddered. I gasped his name as he marked my neck with love bites, claiming me as his.

I don't know how long I laid on his chest with my forehead against his, but it felt so good to have him there, kissing me softly as we came down off of cloud nine.

I shifted off of him and laid facing him in the bed as we both panted, our eyes never breaking contact.

"I love ye'…", he whispered hoarsely, tracing my cheek reverently with his fingertips, "…an' yer' so beautiful…"

"I love you too…"

We laid there until I rolled out of bed and walked into the en suite bathroom with Leo following me to go and freshen up.

I flipped on the light and came face-to-face with a full length mirror and a reflection of Leo and myself.

My hair was in serious need of brushing, my lips were redder and puffier than normal from kissing Leo, I was sweating, my cheeks were reddened, I must have had at least four deep red and purple blossoming love bites on my neck, there were bruises on my hips from where Leo gripped them, and a there was a mixture of Leo's seed and my wetness running down my inner thigh.

"Here, let me get ye' a towel…", Leo said, noticing my leg.

Leo turned and I noticed that there were scratch marks on his back with dried blood around them from where I had gripped his shoulders. I glanced at my hands and saw that his blood was under my nails, a pang of guilt passing through me at the thought of hurting Leo.

He passed me a towel and I wiped my thigh off, not making eye contact with him.

"Yer' sure ye' can't get… well, ye' know, _pregnant_,because of what we jus' did… Are ye' sure yer' not in tha' fertile part of yer' cycle?", he asked, running a hand through his messy curls, as he made eye contact with me in the mirror, "Because I don' wanna ruin yer' life with a baby…".

I turned to him.

"My period has been like clockwork since I was thirteen, I've charted them… It's too early for me to be fertile, besides, I have the Depro-Provera shot to keep me protected for three months, most female agents decide to get this in case something should happen to them while in the field, mainly in case they get…well…captured and then, you know, raped…", I responded, but the second I mentioned rape, Leo tensed up.

"Is that why ye' got it? In case ye' ended up bein' a victim?", he asked, pain and worry in his voice.

"Well, yes… I got it as a precaution.", I replied, "Should something like that ever happen…"

I washed my hands as he picked up his brush out of his travel bag and brushed the messy snarls out of my hair.

"Don' ever say somethin' like that again… I can't bear ta' think about ye' bein' harmed in any way…", he murmured.

I finally got his blood out from beneath my nails as he kissed my now smooth hair.

I dampened a washcloth and told him to turn around, which he obediently did without question.

I opened up the small first aid kit that I forced him to carry with him in his bag and used the washcloth to wipe the dried blood away. He made a small noise of discomfort in the back of his throat as I used one of the alcohol pads to disinfect the scrapes.

"I didn't mean to hurt you…I'm sorry.", I said in remorse as he hissed softly at the sting.

"I'll be okay… I've been through worse scrapes than this, ye' know that…", he replied, looking at me in the mirror.

I nodded, recalling the time when he fell down the steps at the Sci-Ops facility, cutting his back on a jagged piece of metal that had fallen out of the box he was carrying when he fell. It had slashed right through his white dress shirt and cut him open. He came to me immediately, barging into our shared lab, and interrupting Professor Vaughn, who was ranting at me for no reason (Vaughn was always upset at someone), just so I could patch him up.

When I was done cleaning out the scratches, I went to leave, but Leo stopped me.

"Ye' don't have ta' leave… there's a small kitchen area in here, I can brew some tea up an' we can work on tha' DWARFs if ye' want."

"Let's do that in my room… we made a mess in your bed and should call housekeeping for fresh bedclothes.", I replied, wanting to clean myself up.

"Suit yerself then, I'll jus' take a quick shower an' be righ' over wit' tha' DWARFs."

"I'll order some dinner. What are you tasting?"

"A Prosciutto an' Buffalo Mozzarella sandwich with jus' a hint o' homemade Pesto Aioli…but pizza is fine too…", he replied with a smile.

I nodded and pulled on my clothes before running across the hall to my room and showering.

Leo came over with the DWARFs and we got to work on them for a little while before the pizza arrived.

I soon found myself yawning at around half past nine, the day's exhaustion finally catching up with me.

"I'm exhausted Leo…", I yawned.

"I can leave if ye' want ta' go ta' bed…", he said as he began packing up the DWARFs.

I placed a hand on his, stopping him.

"Stay with me…", I said.

It wasn't a question, I needed him beside me.

"I'm not a very calm sleeper…I toss an' turn a lot…", he muttered, but I silenced him with a gentle kiss.

"I don't mind.", I replied, leading him to the dimly lit bedroom.

I settled under the covers, Leo settling beside me, and we faced each other.

"Jemma?", he asked after we were comfortably situated in each other's arms, "Why me?"

"Why you what?", I asked, unsure of what he meant.

"Why do ye' trust me this much? Why did ye' choose ta' stay with me after all this time when ye' could've gone off on yer' own after tha' Academy?", he asked.

In the dim light, I could see how concerned he was.

"You were the only one I could relate to at the Academy. My serums needed efficient delivery devices that I could only imagine, the special procedures that I wanted to perform wouldn't be possible without special equipment, and my ideas for new inventions would have to remain ideas because I didn't know the first thing about taking a pile of metal and turning it into a working machine. I needed you to turn my ideas into realities, to be my sounding board, and to be the other half of me. You challenged me to be better and we agreed with our professors when they said that we made a great team. I stayed with you when we went to Sci-Ops because I knew that, deep down, I was incomplete without you. People started calling us FitzSimmons because we did everything together, we even completed each other's sentences. You made me feel safe and you are my first true friend.", I replied.

"When did ye' realise that ye' were in love with me?", he asked.

"The day you almost jumped out of the plane to save me. It hit me hard yesterday when you asked me about my daydreams and I told you about my dream wedding. I admitted to myself that I loved you when you said that I would make a beautiful bride.", I replied.

"Really?"

"Yeah, I realised that I had been in love with you for years in that moment. When did you realize that you loved me?"

"After tha' shower when ye' walked away from me at my bunk."

"Today?", I replied, surprised that it took the both of us so long to realise our feelings for each other, yet we had only just consummated our relationship several hours ago.

"Yeah…I guess I'm a bit of a late bloomer…", he said, an unmistakable note of sadness in his reply.

I pressed against him and looked into his eyes.

"I don't mind that as long as you don't mind the pace of things."

He kissed my forehead and I felt him smile as he wrapped his arms around me.

"I don't mind a bit.", he replied.

"I love you.", I murmured.

"I love ye' too."

A few moments later, Leo was asleep and as I let myself follow him into the land of dreams, my last conscious thought crossed my mind.

"_Either I'm living in a dream, or life couldn't be sweeter."_


End file.
